WAITING GAME In this photo taken in July, vehicles and residents wait for floodwater to recede before they can cross this section of Barangay Singcang-Airport in Bacolod City. —PHOTO COURTESY OF BACOLOD CITY PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICE
BACOLOD CITY — The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has asked the national government to set aside P500 million for the installation of floodgates in five major rivers here to prevent flooding in this economic center, the provincial capital of Negros Occidental.
Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said the floodgates would prevent water from entering the rivers during high tide and during heavy rains in the city.
Expected to be included in the floodgate project are the Magsungay, Lupit, Sum-ag, Mandalagan and Banago rivers.
Benitez said pumping stations would also be installed to drain rising waters in rivers.
On Nov. 28, Benitez met with a Japanese consultant working with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) to discuss the flooding problem in the city.
“They are going around the city to identify the best solution to our drainage and floods,” he said, noting that the consultant raised the possibility that the Asian Development Bank and Jica could help the city government in its flood mitigation program.
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State of calamity
Benitez is hopeful that the floodgate program will start next year once its allocation is retained in the 2024 budget of the DPWH, which has completed its program of works for the project.
In August, floods due to monsoon rains enhanced by Typhoon “Goring” (international name: Saola) hit 33 villages of the city’s 61 barangays.
The floods forced almost 10,000 residents to seek shelter in evacuation centers, caused the suspension of classes at all levels for several days and led the city council to place Bacolod under a state of calamity. —CARLA GOMEZ