Early rain floods NCR streets, interrupts PNR trips

Heavy rain that fell before dawn Tuesday flooded several areas in Metro Manila and caused the interruption of some trips of the Philippine National Railways.

 

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, in posts on its Twitter account, initially noted floods in Sampaloc and Sta. Mesa districts in Maila.

 

Its early flood alerts as of 7 a.m. included España Boulevard and Lacson Street, where it said floods were gutter-deep.

 

The area had also been flooded Monday night due to heavy rain.

 

University of Santo Tomas, which is located along España Boulevard, had suspended classes for the day after many of its students were stranded due to the rain Monday.

 

The MMDA also noted knee-deep floods along Ramon Magsaysay Boulevard and the eastbound part of Pureza Street.

 

It said the floods there were knee-deep.

 

Floods were also knee-deep along R. Papa Street in Manila, the MMDA added.

 

As of 6 a.m., dzBB’s Carlo Mateo reported several other areas in Manila were flooded due to the rain. Visibility was poor to almost zero at España, the report added.

 

The Light Rail Transit Authority said streets near many LRT stations were also flooded.

 

LRTA spokesman Hernando Cabrera said floods were noted near LRT-1 stations at Monumento, 5th Ave, Blumentritt, Bambang and Quirino (ankle deep).

 

Floods at the R. Papa and Abad Santos stations were knee-deep, he added.

 

Cabrera also said the floods near the LRT-2 Pureza Station were ankle-deep.

 

PAGASA said the rain was due not to an active low-pressure area hovering off Mindanao but to the inter-tropical convergence zone.

 

“Epekto yan ng ITCZ,” PAGASA forecaster Manny Mendoza said in an interview on dzBB radio.

 

The ITCZ is described by the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration as the region that circles the Earth, near the equator.

 

It is where the trade winds of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres come together.

 

PAGASA forecaster Jori Loiz said more rain is expected later this week, especially once the ALPA becomes a cyclone that will enhance the southwest monsoon.

 

“’Pag nabuo ang bagyo na ALPA natin, mag-attract ito ng habagat,” Loiz said in a separate interview on dzBB.

 

PNR trips 'interrupted'

 

Meanwhile, the Philippine National Railways said its commuter trips were interrupted due to flooding in various sections of its tracks.

 

“PNR CX trips interrupted by flooding in various sections of tracks. Please stand by for announcements of resumption,” it said.

 

But as of 7 a.m., it said its commuter services were back in operation, as the Magsaysay Avenue and España crossings were passable to trains. –KG, GMA News