Buhisan Dam overflowed during downpour, says MCWD
Sesarian Abayan, 67, lost her shanty under the Kinalumsan Bridge in barangay Mambaling after the river overflowed following a downpour last Tuesday. Will the Cebu city government be able to relocate her to a safer dwelling?
(CDN PHOTO/JUNJIE MENDOZA)
Four sitios of barangay Tisa in Cebu City were declared under a state of calamity after the flooding that damaged several houses last Tuesday.
The flooding was traced to the Buhisan Dam, which overflowed due to the huge volume of rain and runoff from the upper barangays.
But Charmaine Kara, head of the Metro Cebu Water District (MCWD) Public Affairs Department, clarified that the water district did not open the gate of the dam to release water, which was widely rumored earlier.
She said the dam serves as a flood control because it traps the water coming from three rivers.
If not for the dam, Kara said, a bigger volume of water would have flowed downstream.
She reiterated the need to relocate families living by the riverbanks below the dam.
Cebu City Councilor Dave Tumulak, who chairs the Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (CCDRRMC), said his office has decided during its meeting to buy lots for the relocation of families living beside the Kinalumsan and Guadalupe rivers.
The council has allotted P20 million for the lot purchase.
RELOCATION LOTS
The task now is to find a landowner willing to sell suitable property . Tumulak called on people who own big parcels of land and are willing to sell to visit his office.
He said the lots must not be located in danger zones or be at risk of flooding or landslides.
Tumulak said those willing lot owners can get fair payment depending on the official assessment of their lots.
Tisa barangay captain Philip Zafra said the barangay council declared on Wednesday the sitios of Quinto Limbo, Sta. Teresita Village, Tambisan and Tahna under a state of calamity to allow the barangay to use its calamity funds to assist the victims.
A total of 35 families, or 196 individuals, fled their homes after the Kinalumsan River overflowed, causing massive flooding in Tisa.
Zafra said Quinto Limbo was badly affected. The three other sitios were flooded but the damage was not as severe.
In Quinto Limbo, four small houses collapsed and 16 others were damaged.
City Hall can give P10,000 financial aid to owners of houses that were destroyed, and P5,000 for damaged houses.
Despite calls to relocated, affected families returned to their homes yesterday morning or moved in with relatives.
Thirteen barangays were affected by Tuesdays flooding- Buhisan, Tisa, Punta, Labangon, Mambaling, Duljo, Sapangdaku, Guadalupe, Calamba, Pahina San Nicolas, Pahina Central, Pasil and Ermita.
RAINFALL VOLUME
The state-run Pagasa weather station in Mactan recorded 18 millimeters of rainfall in less than two hours last Tuesday. The intense rain was concentrated in Cebu City.
Kara said it was unusual for the Buhisan Dam to overflow in less than an hour.
She said MCWD will lessen its production of water from its undergound wells to maximize the supply from Buhisan Dam.
In 2008, MCWD made a study for geohazard mapping. One of its recommendations was to relocate the residents living near the danger zone.
The Cebu city government asked MCWD to install an alarm system to alert residents in case the dam overflows.
A green light would flash when the water level is one meter away from spilling over while a yellow light would signal a half meter level.
The alarm system will go off and a red light will flash when the water is already close to overflowing. / with reports from Correspondents Nestle L. Semilla and Mary Claire U. Catado