“Unfortunate” is probably the kindest word to describe the periodic and severe flooding of the city of Marikina in eastern Metro Manila for a decade and a half now.
Most memorable of the incidents was caused by supertyphoon Ondoy in September 2009 when a big part of the 2,150-hectare land area became for about a week an ocean of houses, floating household and street treasures and wastes, felled tree branches, and rafts with people panicking to safety. Ulysses and regular typhoons also wrought havoc in the following years, and then this week came Carina’s monsoon rains and “habagat” winds with intensifying strength and scope (parts of Metro Manila and till northern Luzon) underestimated. And, Marikina again became a focal point for media coverage and woeful tales with Carina almost matching the peak floodwater level of Ondoy and beating its amount of rainfall.
Fated By Nature
By fact, Marikina is fated to suffer Nature’s wrath being the valley where the rains falling on critically deforested mountains of the Sierra Madre range cascade and settle past the towns of Tanay, Antipolo, Baras, and a few more. Here also is where the uncontrolled quarrying in Rodriguez (formerly Montalban) spill its gravel silt down the river path leading to Marikina till Pasig.
Another misfortune is that Marikina cannot be faulted as the cause of flooding. It has the reputation and recognitions for being a clean and orderly city with strict ordinances against littering and for serious compliance with the national solid waste management act from the time of the two Fernando mayors.
One can roam many streets not seeing paper scraps, food crumbs, and over-spilling wastebins. After big floods, street cleaners and trucks are quick to clear the mud and restore normal life to a barely half-a-million population and bustle to a growing economy. The public market also attracts residents of nearby towns and cities not only for its being a drop-off center for provincial harvests but also for sanitation practices.
Dredging, Restoring The River
A big irony of late is that Mayor Marcy Teodoro had given the community a big reason to feel relieved that Ondoy-like onslaughts might no longer disrupt their life.
In February 2021, the local government unit launched a project for the massive dredging and restoration of the Marikina River, the biggest tributary of the Pasig River, which can also benefit the rest of the river network spanning the towns of Rodriguez, San Mateo, Cainta, and Pasig. Heavy equipment and barges remain in place to continually increase the water carrying capacity of this river.
Simultaneously, construction of buffers/walls still goes on to prevent water overflow to the streets. Residents in the areas near the river and creeks like Barangays Tumana and Nangka and the Provident Village have expressed that with the project they were spared from recent floods entering their houses and from being herded to evacuation centers.
Keeping The Prime Spot
It is sad for Marikina to keep its prime spot in the flooding radar.
From the 1970s, the city has slowly but surely been transformed to a good residential option for families moving from the congested Manila, creating a welcome blend of a quiet “probinsya" origin and a vibrant urban spirit.
As well as grown to a lively hub of businesses and other opportunities, new and old, big and small. I know only too well having spent a big part of my adult life in the community.
(Ms. Erlie Lopez is a writer, poet, PR consultant, and environment advocate. erlielopez@gmail.com)
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