Residents wade through a flooded street as heavy rains brought by the southwest monsoon continue to affect parts of Luzon. Pagasa warned of possible flooding and landslides as significant rainfall persists in several areas. Contributed photo of Theo Garbanzo.
As tropical depression Pilandok bears down on Northern Luzon with 45-kilometer-per-hour winds and gusts of up to 55 kph, the southwest monsoon (habagat) will continue to bring torrential rains in several areas across the Philippine archipelago.
In a bulletin announcement, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) disclosed that most of the country will have no respite from heavy rains and flooding as the week starts today.
While Pilandok is not expected to make landfall, the storm will enhance the southwest monsoon and induce it to unleash more rainfall that could last until tomorrow afternoon.
PAGASA forecasts 100 to 200 millimeters of rain in Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, Abra, Benguet, Pangasinan, Zambales, Tarlac, Pampanga and Bataan while 50 to 100 mm rainfall is expected in Metro Manila, Apayao, Kalinga, Ifugao, Mountain Province, Nueva Vizcaya, Nueva Ecija, Bulacan, Rizal, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas and Occidental Mindoro.
Last week, rain fell almost nonstop in Metro Manila and a large part of Luzon.
The Manila City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Department reported on Sunday, August 30, that the volume of rain in Manila on Saturday was equal to 10 days of rainfall. The heaviest downpour was recorded at 4:00 in the afternoon.
PAGASA resident meteorologist Christian John Evangelista reported that the Saturday rainfall reached 147.4 millimeters at the agency’s rain-measuring station at the Dr. Alejandro Albert Elementary School in Sampaloc, Manila.
The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) recorded on Sunday that based on the report of PAGASA’s Science Garden Station in Quezon City, the rainfall in the metropolis on Saturday reached 186 mm.
In Santo Tomas town in Pampanga, thousands of residents endured nearly three weeks of flooding, prompting Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) secretary Vivencio ‘Vince’ Dizon to propose a long-term, integrated solution that includes deepening tributaries of the Pampanga River and building a massive floodwater holding basin.
The public works chief described the situation as complicated and with no quick solution.
“There will be no instant fix, but the prolonged flooding in Santo Tomas underscore(s) the urgency of building a system capable not only of draining excess water faster but also of storing and eventually putting the water to productive use,” Dizon pointed out.
DPWH studies note that the Pampanga River basin has long been among Central Luzon’s most flood-vulnerable areas and large portions of the basin are highly vulnerable to flooding, with runoff from upstream areas moving slowly downstream and prolonged inundation lasting for weeks or even months in some low-lying communities.
The government has identified Sto. Tomas as a priority area in the Central Luzon-Pampanga Floodway project, which aims to redirect excess water from the upper river basin to Manila Bay.