ARMM clears Taviran bridge of water hyacinth
Local News • 04:54 AM Mon Sep 8, 2014
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By:
Ferdinandh Cabrera, The Mindanao Cross
Photo courtesyand ARMM HEART
COTABATO CITY,
(Sept. 7/NDBC) –- To prevent further flooding in low lying communities in the
town of Mother Kabuntalan, Maguindanao, the Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao (ARMM), through its disaster and response office, cleared Sundaythe Taviran
Bridge with huge chunks of water hyacinth, locally known as pusaw.” The water
lilies once clogged the bridge’s foundation could also block the smooth flow of
river water toward Tamontaka River in the borders of Datu Odin Sinsuat,
Maguindanao and Cotabato City.
Told of the
Taviran bridge situation, ARMM Executive Sec. Laisa Alamia who also chairs the
Humanitarian Emergency Response Action Team (HEART), quickly alerted ARMM
Public Works Sec. Emil Sadain of the building up of water lilies underneath
Taviran River.Sadain said in
a phone interview he immediately advised the mobile quick response team from
Maguindanao 1st engineering district to take charge of flushing out the
water hyacinth before the situation deteriorate.
We are happy
to note that was quickly done today as reported by our team in the site, our
concern is the consequence if we let the situation worst like what had been
experienced in the past years,” Alamia told reporters.
Around 40
individuals in orange uniform were armed with chainsaw, machete’s and bamboo
poles gathered at the top of Taviran bridge working.
They managed
to clean up the area in just two hours, but since continuous batch of new water
hyacinths are coming, they stayed up till afternoon to prevent further clogging.
We have our
standby crew from DPWH ready for immediate dispatch during disaster, like the river
team in Kabuntalan, we have other teams deployed in Lanao del Sur highways redy
to flush of canal with debris,” Sadain said, adding that separate teams are
also ready to do the job once landslides occur.
In Barangay Rosary
Heights 6, Cotabato City today, residents residing near the Kakar river started
to evacuate, bringing with them appliances and other valuables since water
level rose Saturday night.
As of posting,
city disaster officials are not responding to text messages and calls.
In June 2011, 21
of 37 villages in Cotabato City were submerged partly due to clogging of water hyacinths in
Rio Grande de Mindanao, specifically under the Quirino Bridge that connects the
city to Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao. River water, instead of flowing downstream toward the Moro Gulf, took its course and flooded the city's low lying barangays.(NDBC)