MANILA, Philippines — Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) General Manager Nicolas Torre III on Monday said the agency swiftly deployed mobile pumps and L-shaped barriers to drain the floods that hurdled hours-long traffic along the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX).
Incessant rains caused by southwest monsoon of Habagat rendered parts of major roads in Bulacan, including NLEX and MacArthur Highway, impassable to some vehicles, the Bulacan Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) said Sunday.
Viral videos show north and southbound lanes of NLEX are impassable due to knee-deep floodwaters. The water began rising at 10:20 a.m. and began to subside at 3:05 a.m. Sunday.
“Mga two hours ago as we speak nakarating ‘yung aming isang mobile pump plus L-shape barriers. I-poposition yun para mabawasan naman ang kalbaryo ng mga motorista doon,” Torre said in a press conference of the Office of the Civil Defense on Monday for updates on flood situations in the country.
(About two hours ago as we speak, one of our mobile pumps plus L-shaped barriers arrived. Those will be positioned to relieve the ordeal of motorists there.)
In the state-weather bureau’s comparative data, more rains were dumped by the recent round of Habagat as it was further enhanced by Tropical Depression Pilandok and a few more weather disturbances which overflowed the waterways causing massive in-city flooding.
Torre however said flood mitigation programs have indeed greatly helped in fast tracking draining of flood waters.
“Sa ngayon mabilis talaga ang paghupa, basta tumigil ang ulan, bumababa kaagad ang tubig,” he said.
(Right now, the water recedes very quickly—as long as the rain stops, the floodwater drops immediately.)
