Soldiers, rebels, LGU workers clear water hyacinth in Datu Piang river
Local News • 17:49 PM Fri Feb 17, 2017
1,759
By:
Edwin Fernandez
Men clearing water hyacinth in Datu Piang, Maguindanao. (Photos by Myrna Jo Henry/ARMM-HEART)
DATU PIANG,
Maguindanao – More than 1,000 environmentalists, laborers, government workers
and Moro rebels have joined hands Thursday afternoon in clearing water hyacinth
under Datu Sajid Piang bridge here as part of efforts to save low lying
communities from floods.
According to
Myrna Jo Henry, speaking for Humanitarian Emergency Action Response Team
(HEART) of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), said more than 700
workers along with 570 members of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF)
have cleared about 130 by 75 square meters of water hyacinth that posed
flooding threats to residents.
Previous
clogging of water lilies that were not removed or hopped into pieces had caused
floods to nearby communities, including Cotabato City, the downstream of Rio Grande
de Mindanao.
ARMM-HEART
spearheaded the clearing operations manually in the absence of mechanical
equipment to unclog the water plants below bridges in the marshland.
Image may contain one or more people tree sky grass outdoor and nature sand//scontent.fceb2-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/16730374_10210009671773164_2926957517230329113_n.jpg?oh=7315cb16d62cedd93682aa9565d3d16bandampoe=59489848 Henry said
clearing operations continue every day to save communities from floods.
Participating
in the bayanihan, Henry said, include volunteers from local government units
of Datu Piang in Maguindanao and Midsayap in North Cotabato, Department of
Public Works and Highways personnel police from Maguindanao and soldiers from
the Army’s 6th Infantry Division. Image may contain one or more people grass outdoor and nature sand//scontent.fceb2-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/16807533_10210009671573159_2735796611341328988_n.jpg?oh=b35d45a56114f21324e5331dd71145faandampoe=5949401E