Rains abate, city back to 'normal'

By Florence F. Hibionada

With rains courtesy of the Southwest moonsoon gone for the moment and floodwaters down the drain, life in the city and province of Iloilo is seemingly back to normal. Barangay clean up throughout the city began early morning yesterday (Thursday) as schools opened anew and business is back on its regular operations.

Such, after thousands of students got an unscheduled midweek holiday Wednesday as school administrators from both government and private schools, colleges and universities cancelled classes. Banks and other business establishments including the malls had a relatively slow day with traffic stalled in flooded areas of the city.

Latest count of affected families in the city reached beyond 15,000 in 88 out of 180 barangays. Similar effort is being done in the province though the number is expected to be lesser with those affected believed to have been caused by the city's clogged-up drainage system.

City residents bore much of the grunt brought by incessant rains Tuesday that went on overnight and until midmorning of Wednesday. Emergency rescue teams and volunteer groups were called in as crisis centers were alerted that addressed the comebacking problems of affected barangays with the perennial floodwater concerns.

Most reached by reporters told of similar tales how this week's flooding came as a surprise given the extent of its effect, the wider area it covered and deeper floodwaters that seeped in through houses. In Mandurriao, longtime residents of a subdivision in Pueblo Concepcion, Barangay Navais said waters inside houses were up to their thighs. Among the more notable damage in said district was the collapse of some four blocks of cemented wall that used to fence off the property of former city hall executive, Pascual "Toto E" Espinosa. Portions of government hospital, Western Visayas Medical Center (WVMC) was also flooded particularly its Orthopaedic section where folks of patients complained of the unsanitary conditions thereafter.

In Molo, some 16 tombs of the "apartment-type" structures inside the public cemetery in Tanza collapsed raising health concerns from the barangay officials. The affected burial site had the "7-storey" tombs that gave in to a weakened ground also brought by the rains and the recent earthquake that shook Iloilo. Bystanders had a good view of coffins that were amongst the rubble.

Yet it was to be the morning flights to and from Iloilo that got reporters in a frenzy. Information spread fast of diverted flights due to poor visibility. Extended news coverages of various radio stations heard the accounts of Board Member Manny Gallar who flew in from Manila with three other provincial officials and two mayors in the morning flight of Philippine Airlines (PAL).

Gallar was among the 128 passengers of PAL flight 139 diverted to Cebu after failing to land at the Iloilo airport on its 6 a.m. scheduled arrival. Said board member recounted what he said was a close call and narrow escape from potential danger when their 737 Boeing met air turbulence and shook for about ten minutes. Everyone on board, he said, got a real scare from said ride.

In an interview, The News Today gathered from PAL executives that Wednesday's flight diversion was a "normal" call though made by the pilot given the scenario said flight faced then. Fernando Bermejo, supervising Station Agent on duty said weather conditions prevented a safe landing with poor visibility brought by the non-stop early morning rain. And Cebu airport is the usual alternate station with flight 139 landing safely an hour after it left Iloilo. Ground time was between 7:07 to 8:02 a.m. yet by 8:43 a.m., all on board said flight landed safely albeit shaken up back to Iloilo.

Gallar added it was to be the longest Iloilo-Manila plane ride for him and literally too with the usual 45-minute flight ending up to be about more than two hours.

With the city's thoroughfares passable anew, The News Today learned of new calls from city hall to seriously address the drainage problem. Houses blocking easy flow of water faces reported demolition while an investigation is underway to ascertain what caused the unusual rise of floodwaters.