DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 19 Sept)—Heavy rains Wednesday afternoon until midnight because of the southwest monsoon flooded seven barangays in the southern portion of the city, according to the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) office.
Workers clear the road after a huge tree fell at GSIS Heights in Matina Wednesday night (18 September 2024) after strong rains battered Davao City. MindaNews photo by GREGORIO BUENO
Affected villages include Barangays 7-A, 32-D, Bucana, Ma-a, Matina Aplaya, Matina Crossing, and Talomo Proper.
In some areas—like at the McArthur Highway corner Tulip Drive in Matina—the flood was still visible until noon Thursday.
Lyndon Ancajas, head of the administration and training division of the CDRRMO, said there were no individuals displaced amid the flooding.
He told reporters that the residents in affected areas—particularly in Purok 13, Bugac in Barangay Ma-a, Lanzona Subdivision in Matina Aplaya, and Purok 59 in NHA Bangkal—preferred not to be evacuated as the waters subsided soon enough.
The flooding at Tulip Drive, with water level above the knee, was due to the drainage system still not connected to the coastal area, according to Paul Bermejo, head of the Ancillary Services Unit (ASU).
“The floodwaters have no way out. The waters will subside, but it is slow. Tomorrow, the waters will be gone there,” he added.
Strong rains in Davao City Wednesday night (18 September 2024) caused floods in some parts of the city. There was still floodwater as of 6:45 a.m. the next morning at the junction of McArthur Highway and Tulip Drive in Matina. MindaNews photo by GREGORIO BUENO
He said that the ASU, along with the City Engineers Office and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), will have to convene to discuss the drainage system issue in the area.
Bermejo said that the mixture of high tides and heavy rains caused the flooding along the Shanghai Creek located in Barangay Matina Aplaya. (Ian Carl Espinosa / MindaNews)
