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Zambo City to install alarm system to warn residents of floods

By Teofilo Garcia, Jr.

February 27, 2023, 7:21 pm

<p>The Zamboanga City Hall. <em>(PNA file photo)</em></p>

The Zamboanga City Hall. (PNA file photo)

ZAMBOANGA CITY – The city government is set to install a flood alarm system to help determine impending occurrences of flooding in this southern port city.

Mayor John Dalipe said Monday they have allocated PHP5 million to acquire water sensors with alarm systems to be installed in strategic places in this city.

Dalipe said the alarm devices will be mounted along the riverbanks of the Pasonanca-Tumaga, Ayala-Tulungatung, Vitali, Putik and Curuan rivers here.

“With the climate change, we need to be ready,” Dalipe said in an interview, adding that the sensors will be installed by the second quarter of the year.

Currently, he said the city is only relying on the water level advisory of the Zamboanga City Water District (ZCWD) to determine if there is an incoming flood, especially during inclement weather.

Since December last year, the ZCWD had been issuing hourly water level and turbidity advisories to alarm residents of impending floods and stoppage of water service to its concessionaires.

For the past two heavy flood incidents here, the ZCWD has suspended water service to concessionaires for 24 to 36 hours as water production at the treatment plant decreases due to high turbidity.

Meanwhile, Dalipe said they will also upgrade the communication system to fast-track information dissemination, particularly to residents in far-flung areas.

Currently, the city government has established the Barangay Information Officers’ Network to enhance the relay of information on disasters among villages. (PNA)

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