Students wade through floods in Bulacan and Pampanga to get to class

High tide and rains from the Southwest Monsoon caused flooding in Hagonoy, Bulacan and Macabebe, Pampanga, but this did not discourage students from going to school on Monday, the first day of School Year 2022-2023.

In Macabebe, students rode on bancas to get to school, according to a report on GMA News' Unang Balita on Tuesday.

They wore slippers or boots, and put up their feet on chairs as their classrooms were also flooded.

Still the face-to-face classes went on.

Meanwhile, in Hagonoy, students and residents went on with their daily lives as they are used to the flooding which usually occurs due to the high tide, according to a report by Susan Enriquez on Unang Balita on Tuesday.

Students wore rain boots and were carried piggyback to and from school.

According to Rene Crisostomo of the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office - Hagonoy, the local government is already coordinating with the national government in finding a solution to the perennial flooding, which is now aggravated by rains from the Southwest Monsoon enhanced by Severe Tropical Storm Florida.

"May ongoing paghuhukay sa Barangay Isidro at Carillo... May isa pang parating na maghuhukay sa Barangay San Miguel para ang high tide na ito ay maibsan," he said.

(There is ongoing dredging activity in Barangay Isidro and Carillo, and another one soon in Barangay San Miguel to lessen the level of high tide.)

Crisostomo said the floods usually recede after a few hours and the roads get dry in the afternoons.

The local government, he said, is also assisting students by giving them free rides using an Army truck so they can get to school despite the floods.

On Tuesday however, classes in all levels in public and private schools in Hagonoy were canceled due to the bad weather caused by Florita.

Hagonoy serves as catch basin of rain water coming from Nueva Ecija. —KG, GMA News