Gov. Mamba hopes Ulysses ordeal leads to effective flood prevention

As his province was struggling with its worst flooding in 45 years, Cagayan Governor Manuel Mamba said on Sunday that he was optimistic that Cagayan's problems with the region's water systems would finally be addressed with the assistance of the national government and its agencies.

“Ngayon lang po kami nagkakaroon ng pagasa na magkaroon ng solusyon ang napakalaking problema ng aming rehiyon lalong lalo na ang aming probinsiya,” said Mamba during a briefing with President Rodrigo Duterte and other officials.

“Ang probinsya po namin ang labasan at lagusan ng lahat ng tubig ng Region 2,” he added.

Mamba hoped that these mitigation efforts would prevent any future Typhoon Ulysses-like flooding in the province.

“It is worsening every year," lamented the governor. "We have to do something about this and we felt that [the Duterte Administration] started [the mitigation work] by the restoration of the Cagayan River.

“I hope that this will go on in the immediate future because we feel ito po ang solusyon nito. And of course, the regreening of our denuded forests of both the Sierra Madre ranges. Ganun din po itong Cordillera mountain ranges,” he added.

The flooding in Cagayan that followed the onslaught of Typhoon Ulysses was seen to be the worst flooding that the province had experienced in 45 years.

“This is the first time that we had this kind of flooding. We expected this, pero grabe po itong nangyari sa amin,” Mamba had said. — DVM, GMA News