Mandaue City is rolling out six major flood-control projects targeting critical hotspots such as A.S. Fortuna, A.C. Cortes, and U.N. Avenue to route floodwaters into the ocean.
DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon inspected the key sites on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026, stating that the funded projects will be completed by the end of 2026 and early next year.
Mandaue City Mayor Thadeo "Jonkie" Ouano and local officials noted that community cooperation on waste management remains essential to prevent trash from blocking the new drainage systems.
MANDAUE City is rolling out six major flood-control projects to protect its most vulnerable neighborhoods from severe water buildup. The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and local officials are combining efforts to route floodwaters straight into the ocean.
DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon inspected the key sites on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026, following instructions from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to tackle recurring flooding across Cebu. He was joined by Mandaue City Mayor Thadeo "Jonkie" Ouano and Mandaue City Lone District Rep. Emmarie "Lollipop" Ouano-Dizon. While Dizon was not able to provide individual project costs, the work targets six critical hotspots: A.S. Fortuna, the Innodata area, A.C. Cortes, U.N. Avenue, M.L. Quezon, and the LH Prime area in Subangdaku.
In A.S. Fortuna, the city recently finished a two-by-two-meter drainage opening connecting to Orell Creek to manage water coming from upland zones. DPWH is currently building extra connections linking to the Subangdaku River and Mahiga Creek.
"Tatapusin namin 'yun, lahat ng projects na 'yun matatapos by end of the year, and early next year. So, pero ngayon, I think we should see some relief already. So, tuloy-tuloy, that's all funded already, and we will ensure that they are completed within 2026," Dizon said.
(We will finish those. All of those projects will be completed by the end of the year and early next year. But for now, I think we should already see some relief. So, we will continue with them. They are all funded already, and we will ensure that they are completed within 2026.)
For low-lying coastal areas like A.C. Cortes, DPWH plans to install a pumping station and floodgate system to prevent seawater backflow during high tides.
"We will be building in 2027 a pumping station and a floodgate, no? Para hindi mag-backflow ang tubig from the ocean pabalik ng Mandaue. So, we will have a floodgate, but at the same time, we will have pumps that will drain from A.C. Cortes drainage all the way out into the ocean," Dizon added.
Other active measures include drainage improvements at LH Prime and a proposed cut-off channel in Subangdaku near Innodata. Local officials recently secured a right-of-way through a private warehouse in that area to help redirect floodwaters straight to the sea.
Dizon noted that these efforts follow a 2016–2017 master drainage plan that previously lacked full funding and implementation.
"By the way, all of this is consistent with the 2017 Master Plan that Gov and I found, which was presented to PBBM after Tino... So, finally implement na natin," Dizon said.
Local leaders welcomed the help from the national government, explaining that city funds alone were not enough to address the massive drainage problems. Cebu Gov. Pamela Baricuatro and Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Philip Lo also joined the inspection to coordinate funding and implementation for the upcoming 2027 projects.
"First of all, in behalf of the Mandauehanons, we're more than grateful for Secretary Vince's visit today, to see what's really happening on the ground," Mayor Ouano said.
"All of these have been addressed, pero hindi lang talaga matatapos because this has been happening time immemorial, decades na. But now, we're finally seeing na na-implement na 'yung collaboration between local and national government," he added.
While progress is happening, Mayor Ouano reminded residents to manage their expectations about total flood elimination. Water cascading from Cebu City's upland barangays and rapid development continue to bring large volumes of water down into Mandaue.
"Hopefully, hindi siguro katulad ng dati talaga na wala na talaga, pero mas mabilis na mag-drain 'yung floodwaters compared before," Ouano said.
In the past, floodwaters in areas like A.S. Fortuna reached neck-deep levels. Recent LGU work has already cut drainage wait times along that stretch down to under 30 minutes, with fully opened connections expected to reduce that further to 10 or 15 minutes.
However, city officials emphasized that modern drainage systems cannot work if trash blocks the channels. Public cooperation on waste management is essential to protect these major flood-control investments.
"Mao nang 'di pod ko maingon na wala na gyud baha, kay ang mga tawo pod, mohangyo pod ta na bantayan pod nila ang paglabay nila sa ilang mga basura. Tinabangay man 'to tanan, no? Kailangan naay involvement sa community," the mayor said.
(That’s why I also cannot say that there will no longer be flooding, because we also have to ask people to be mindful of how they dispose of their garbage. It’s a collective effort, right? The community needs to be involved.)
Solutions in Cebu City
As part of his tour across four priority areas in Cebu—including Mandaue City, the pier area, Villa del Rio, and Barangay Kinasang-an—Dizon also inspected a drainage system connected to a frequently overflowing creek in Kinasang-an. Residents reported that even minimal rain causes the creek to overflow and inundate their homes.
Kinasang-an Barangay Captain Susan Enriquez noted that at least 10 out of the barangay's 26 sitios regularly experience flooding. As a lowland catch basin, the barangay receives heavy runoff from neighboring communities, worsened by tree-cutting in upland areas and improper garbage disposal.
Dizon assessed the site to formulate both immediate relief and long-term infrastructure interventions, joined by the barangay captain of neighboring coastal Barangay Basak Pardo. Addressing the severe overflow coming from the Cebu City mountains into Basak Pardo, Dizon noted that decades of structural encroachments have blocked natural waterways.
To solve this issue, the DPWH is coordinating with local and barangay officials on options to redirect excess runoff from national highway drainages directly toward the South Road Properties (SRP) reclamation area and out into the ocean, providing crucial protection for impacted communities moving forward. /CDF