High tide aggravates flooding in 3 Bulacan towns

The high tide in Manila Bay on Monday worsened the flooding in three towns in Bulacan province on Tuesday, according to the head of the Central Luzon’s Office of Civil Defense. In a phone interview with GMANews.TV, director Neri Amparo said the affected and inaccessible towns were Calumpit, Hagonoy, and Pulilan. "Nag-high tide kahapon [Monday]. Kaya lalong lumala yung baha (There was high tide yesterday, so the flood problems worsened)," Amparo said. Radio dzBB’s Denevin Macaranas, meanwhile, reported that passenger buses were barred from entering Hagonoy due to the flooding. In Pulilan, about 1,000 families from Barangays (villages) Dulong Malabon, Inaon, Dampol II-A and B, Tibag, and Peñabatan were affected. Relief and rescue efforts remain ongoing at the affected municipalities, with the assistance of the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in augmenting the resources of local government units, Amparo said. Calumpit flooding Calumpit Mayor James de Jesus said 21 out of the town’s 29 barangays (villages) are still submerged in flood waters, with 13 villages "flooded completely." "Yung range ng baha sa affected barangays ay one to eight feet (The range of the height of the floods in affected villages are from one to eight feet)," he said in a separate phone interview with GMANews.TV. He added that 14,000 families have been displaced and are staying in at least nine evacuation centers in the municipality. De Jesus said that their main concern is the refusal of residents to leave their homes because they do not want to be crowded in evacuation centers. "Nonetheless, we’re still going to send rubber boats to rescue them," the mayor said. A radio dzBB report added that police had cordoned off Calizon village, barring people from entering the area especially at night to prevent looters from exploiting the situation. Residents of Calumpit town earlier said it is usual for them to experience chest-deep floods once the floodwaters from the nearby Pampanga and Nueva Ecija provinces start to subside. [See: For downstream Bulacan town, flood comes from its neighbors] "Hanggang dibdib pa rin sa labas ng bahay. Hindi namin alam kung bumababa o hindi kasi pabago-bago baka dahil high tide o nagpakawala ulit ang dam. Tingin namin mga isang linggo pa bago mawala lahat ng tubig (The water is still chest-deep outside our home. We don't know if its subsiding or not. We think the flood will last for one week)," said Luisa Tan, 54, of Barangay Frances Bukid in Calumpit. And being familiar with floods, Tan said residents in their area have adjusted to the situation well. "Sanay naman ang mga tao dito na binabaha kaya marami din sa kanila may mga bangka. Idinadaan sa mga bukid kapag mataas na mataas (People here are used to floods that's why some already have their own bancas)." - GMANews.TV