The Japan International Cooperation Agency has completed the repair of a flood control system in Pasig City whose components and remote stations were severely damaged by previous typhoons.
Jica officials on Monday formally turned over the newly restored Effective Flood Control Operation System in a simple ceremony at the Rosario Pumping Station in Barangay Manggahan, Pasig City.
The system has been placed under Jica’s 15-month rehabilitation.
In October 2014, Jica and MMDA officials signed an agreement for the improvement of the facility, involving the restoration of the telemetry system and replacement of its radio system—two of the most vital components of the project.
The telemetry system will be used for a more efficient flood monitoring and early warning mechanism while the radio system will help in reporting advance rainfall data.
Under the agreement, Jica provided the funding of the restoration of the telemetry equipment amounting to P74.7 million.
MMDA chairman Emerson Carlos said the project will contribute to the flood control and early warning system especially during the onset of the rainy season.
He said that Efcos will be beneficial not only to the eastern Metro Manila residents but also to those in the province of Rizal such as the towns of San Mateo, and Rodriguez—which likewise bore the brunt of the massive flooding in the wake of Typhoon “Ondoy.”
“The Efcos Project will greatly complement our continuous efforts to minimize flooding in flood-prone areas the Pasig-Marikina-Laguna Lake complex thus saving thousands of lives during this natural calamity,” Carlos said.
As early as February, Carlos said that hundreds of MMDA personnel have embarked on the annual Estero Blitz program, the agency’s waterways cleanup drive in Metro Manila, in preparation for the coming typhoon months.
There are 18 observation stations transmitting data to the Efcos while four monitoring stations (Department of Public Works and Highways Central Office, Pagasa, Napindan, and Rosario) are receiving the data.
There are also nine flood warning posts along Manggahan Floodway which are vital in the operation of the two major flood control structures in Metro Manila—the Rosario Weir Floodgates and the Napindan Hydraulics Control Structure.
Phase 1 Efcos b Project, which was completed in 1993, is expected and designed to be an effective flood control operation system for the Pasig-Marikina-Laguna Lake Complex through real-time rainfall and water-level data collection via various systems, including telemetry, early warning, and multiplex communication in Metro Manila.