Marcos orders DPWH to restore connectivity in flood-hit Central Luzon — Dizon

President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. ordered the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to immediately restore connectivity in areas in Central Luzon severely affected by flooding and infrastructure damage, Secretary Vince Dizon said Tuesday.

Interviewed on GMA Network’s Unang Hirit, Dizon said Marcos’ directive particularly covers Pampanga, Tarlac, and Zambales, where heavy rains damaged roads and bridges that led to disrupted transportation.

“Unang kabilin-bilinan po ng Pangulo is kailangan mabilis nating maresolba itong mga nananatili nating mga problema lalo na sa Central Luzon,” Dizon said.

(The President's first order is to resolve immediately the problems, particularly in Central Luzon.)

“Lalo na sa mga probinsya ng Tarlac, Pampanga, at Zambales. Dahil nga napakadami pang mga problema ang iniwan nitong napakabigat na pag-ulan nitong nakaraang mga araw,” he added.

(Especially in the provinces of Tarlac, Pampanga, and Zambales. The heavy rains in the past days really caused a lot of problems.)

Dizon made the statement following a meeting with the President on Monday evening.

In Pampanga, traffic remained heavily affected along the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) in San Simon, where floodwaters have disrupted the movement of vehicles and goods.

Dizon said DPWH, NLEX Corp., the Department of Transportation and the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) have been coordinating efforts to address the flooding. Temporary flood barriers have been installed and pumps deployed to remove water from the expressway.

As of early Tuesday morning, Dizon said the first two inner lanes of NLEX in San Simon had become passable to vehicles.

He said authorities are also looking at a permanent solution to the recurring flooding, noting that simply raising the expressway further may not be feasible because of an existing bridge that needs to accommodate buses and trucks.

In Tarlac, two bridges connecting Tarlac City were damaged.

Dizon said the DPWH is prioritizing the repair of Agana Bridge. Workers have been deployed on a 24/7 basis to reconnect the bridge as soon as possible. However, repairs remain difficult because the river beneath the bridges continues to have a strong current.

The Agana Bridge, which was built in the 1960s, needs structural reinforcement, according to Dizon. The Aquino Bridge will also be repaired once weather conditions improve and the river's flow subsides.

“Hindi po 'yan inayos nang mabuti. Hindi po 'yan ni-retrofit nang mabuti. Hindi po na-maintain nang mabuti,” Dizon said.

(It was not repaired properly. It was not retrofitted properly. It was not maintained well.)

Authorities are investigating a sinkhole near the Aquino Bridge. Dizon said simply filling it with soil would not be enough because engineers first need to determine the source of the water that caused the ground to collapse.

Authorities have closed the affected pedestrian area as a precaution.

Dizon pointed out that man-made factors contributed to the flooding, including years of inadequate maintenance and repair of infrastructure.

He acknowledged concerns over the billions of pesos spent on flood-control projects in previous decades. He said the government now needs to prioritize the repair of damaged dikes and bridges and ensure proper maintenance of flood-control infrastructure.

Retarding basins

For Pampanga's long-term flooding problem, Dizon said the government is looking at the construction of retarding basins or water-storage areas that can temporarily hold excess water from mountains and rivers before it reaches populated areas.

He said the DPWH, Pampanga provincial government, and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) are nearing completion of a master plan for the Pampanga River Basin.

“Ang solusyon lang talaga is umpisahan na nating i-implement immediately itong plano ng Asian Development Bank, kasama na rin ang mga partners natin sa Japan,” Dizon said.

(The only solution is to start implementing the ADB plan, together with our partners from Japan.)

“At marami dito ang tinatawag ay 'yung mga retarding basin, 'yung mga imbakan ng tubig na kailangan itayo natin mula sa kabundukan ng Nueva Ecija hanggang sa lahat ng mga munisipyo ng Pampanga at Bulacan,” he added.

(Many of these are retarding basins; these are water storage we need to build from the mountains of Nueva Ecija up to the municipalities of Pampanga and Bulacan.) —AOL, GMA News