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MM flooding

Flood Problem

THE perennial flooding problem now has a “new twist,” with the assurance that all the pumping stations of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) are in “good working conditions.

Numbering 64 and “strategically located” in flood-prone areas throughout the metropolis, which is the country’s premier region, the MMDA-operated pumping stations are manned “round-the-clock.

Operational even before the onset of the rainy season, when even a brief but heavy downpour turns MM into a “giant swimming pool,” pumping stations control the level of floodwaters in low-lying areas.

A few days after assuming the top MMDA post, former Mandaluyong City Mayor Benhur Abalos inspected the agency’s pumping stations, including the Libertad Pumping Station in Pasay City.

Pumping stations are very vital in addressing the flooding woes. Ensuring that they are operating at their full capacity will mitigate the perennial effects of flooding,” according to Abalos.

Likewise, Abalos ordered Baltazar Melgar, chief of the MMDA flood control and sewerage management office, to conduct preventive maintenance works in all flood control facilities in MM.

At the same time, the MMDA chair decreed regular cleaning of all the pumping stations, esteros, drainage canals and other waterways to ensure the smooth flow of floodwaters during heavy rains.

Note that flood mitigation activities aimed at declogging waterways, such as creeks and esteros, are conducted all year-round to maximize the conveyance capacity of open waterways.

Of course, like other well-meaning Filipinos, we share the view of Chairman Abalos that the people, particularly those living near waterways, ought to dispose their garbage properly.

At huwag na huwag nating gawing tapunan ng mga basura, lalo na ang mga plastic, ang mga ilog, drainage canal, estero, plaza, kalsada at iba pang pampublikong lugar.