Zamboanga goes on alert as bad weather causes rivers to swell

The city government went on alert on Monday, October 11, as rivers swelled due to heavy rains, and strong winds threatened to cause more damages in Zamboanga City.

The city has been seeing bad weather since Sunday when a tornado struck and damaged over two dozen houses in the coastal village of Talon-talon.

Councilor El King Omaga said rampaging floodwaters that carried fallen trees and debris threatened the San Ramon Bridge in Talisayan on Monday, but he said there was no major damage. 

But Ayala barangay councilor Imelda Dumdum said an uprooted tree slammed against the bridge’s base, and caused a crack on one of the lanes of the San Ramon Bridge.

Officials said a river in Barangay Ayala also swelled, threatening some 300 families on Calle San Vicente and Calle Santo Nino.

They said a steel bridge in Calle San Miguel, also in Ayala, was nearly destroyed by strong winds that came with a heavy downpour. 

Residents near the Ayala Bridge were advised to prepare for evacuation earlier in the day but the river calmed down when the heavy rains stopped in the late afternoon, said Anthony Juaton, Ayala barangay information network member.

“What worried us was when a  69-kv line of Zamcelco (Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative) went down,” said barangay councilor Dumdum.

They said strong winds also felled and uprooted trees, and damaged property in Salucot in Barangay Pasonanca.

Roads in Patalon, another village, were flooded, and slowed down vehicular traffic flow and caused traffic jams. – Rappler.com

Frencie Carreon is a Mindanao-based journalist and an awardee of the Aries Rufo Journalism Fellowship