Flood ready?

Published by the Visayan Daily Star Publications, Inc.

NINFA R. LEONARDIA Editor-in-Chief & President

CARLA P. GOMEZ Editor CHERYL CRUZ Desk Editor PATRICK PANGILINAN Busines Editor NIDA A. BUENAFE Sports Editor RENE GENOVE Bureau Chief, Dumaguete MAJA P. DELY Advertising Coordinator

CARLOS ANTONIO L. LEONARDIA Administrative Officer

The news that the Bacolod City government is planning to acquire a P53-million dredging machine as a long term solution for the flooding problem is certainly most welcome, especially after last week’s rains, which, while it brought down the intensity of the summer heat that we have been bearing with over the last couple of weeks, also highlighted the perennial problem of flooding that has proven to be one of the tougher challenges for city officials.

The torrential downpours we experienced last week were truly heavy, but because the ones that caused flooding along many of Bacolod’s major streets didn’t even last more than an hour, there should be cause for worry. The city officials who should be in charge of cleaning and preparing the city’s drainage and flood control systems for the wet season should have been taking notes and preparing action plans in order to minimize the impact and damage of floods once the rainy season inevitably begins.

In fairness, although the floodwaters rose quickly, they subsided in the same manner. This means that even if it may not yet be in perfect working order, the drainage system is still working. The remaining weeks of summer gives the city the opportunity to properly prepare its infrastructure for the demands of the rainy season. Storm drains have to be declogged, waterways cleared, and in the absence of its own dredger, dredging with rented equipment will have to be undertaken if it is found to be necessary in preventing floods once the rainy season and the typhoons that come with it rolls around.

Last week’s flash floods have given city officials an idea of just how much work is to be done. The fact that significant areas along the main roads easily flooded after heavy rains that didn’t last more than an hour means that the city is not yet ready for the rainy season. City officials can take their cue from the areas that flooded easily, as those obviously need more attention than the areas that remained relatively dry. We hope that they were paying attention during that test of the city’s drainage and flood control systems and that they are taking the proper actions to make sure that the city will be ready and its inhabitants and their properties protected from the destructive effects of floods when the rains do come in a few weeks.*