100 families evacuate as Rizal river continues to rise

CAMP VICENTE LIM, Philippines – At least 100 families in parts of Rodriguez, Rizal have evacuated for fear of river overflow as the water level in the San Mateo River continued to rise due to heavy rains.

The evacuees were mostly residents of Barangay (village) Burgos who have taken shelter at the Burgos Elementary School on Monday, according to Vicente Tomazar, director of the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (DRRMC) in Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon).

“The residents evacuated on their own. They were those families affected by the flood during typhoon Ondoy (in 2009),” Tomazar said.

He said the water in the San Mateo River rose to 18 to 18.3 meters at around 5 a.m., from the river’s normal level of 15-16 meters.

San Mateo River runs across the villages of San Jose and Burgos in Rodriguez, Rizal to San Mateo and down to Marikina City.

He said heavy rains would cause the water to easily rise since the river is heavily silted.

The DRRMC was closely monitoring the villages of Sta. Ana, Banaba, and Mali in San Mateo town and Barangay San Jose in Rodriguez against a possible river overflow.

The local government of San Mateo had already suspended classes in the pre-school and elementary levels due to the bad weather.

In Antipolo City, 12-year-old Kiana Maru Obleada drowned in Bibit Falls in Barangay Mayamot at around 4:30 p.m. Sunday, the DRRMC also said.