ASU strengthens canal declogging, vdredging in flood-prone areas
THE Ancillary Services Unit (ASU) is now strengthening its drainage and dredging operations in canals in focus areas.
ASU Head Paul Bermejo, in an interview with Madayaw on Monday, said that the simultaneous operations are being conducted in various areas of the city with observed clogged canals.
Bermejo said that they started the dredging at the creek along Victoria Plaza Compound, J.P. Laurel Avenue on Friday, October 11.
"Diha among focus kay baha-baha man pud na diha, ang among na observe perti nang laluma ang balas didto sa creek, mag overflow na siya (We focus in that area because we observed flooding there, and also per our observation, the sand is already deep causing the water to overflow to Bajada)," Bermejo said.
He said that the water in the canal goes to the outfall at the Veloso Creek, which flows to Dacudao, and Agdao towards the sea.
He said that after the dredging, rodding might be done so that silt materials will go to the drainage system and naturally flow out of the creek.
Bermejo said that they intend to finish their canal dredging in two weeks.
The other target areas of their operation are Ecowest Drive, Ecoland, Tulip Drive, McArthur Highway, and Magsaysay Park.
For Ecowest Drive, Bermejo said that a team composed of personnel from ASU, the City Engineer's Office, and CENRO was assigned to the area for rodding.
For Tulip Drive, a team was also assigned to work on the removal of the mounds of sand on the road shoulder so it would not be flushed to the manholes.
As for McArthur Highway, a team is also working on the opening up of the manhole, particularly on the Nissan side. Dredging operations are also being conducted in the area.
As for Magsaysay Avenue, a team is also conducting a rodding in the area going to Magsaysay Park because they found that there are drainage canals that no longer absorb rainwater.
Bermejo said that Dabawenyos can help ASU lessen the burden of desilting canals in their simple ways.
"Ang mga construction materials ginabutang sa sidewalk ayaw na ninyo himua bi one time lang kay mag-ulan kay didto gyud na makita sa manhole. Unya mas mayo nga sa household palang maka segregate dili na maapil ang recyclable na basura ang residual nalang, ang residual nalang mao to ipick-up sa cenro par ma reduce ang basura sa household palang (Please refrain from placing construction materials on the sidewalk because each time it rains, it will go to the manhole. It will also be best for households to conduct waste segregation so that recyclables won't be added into residuals and that residuals alone will be picked up by CENRO)," Bermejo said.
"Mas mayo pa nga wala pa'y baha wala pa'y kusog na ulan, mulihok nata daan (It is advised that before the flooding or strong rains, we act on these things)," Bermejo added. CIO