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| Nonstop rains caused many fish ponds in Paombong town, Bulacan province, to overflow on Wednesday, resulting in damage to the local fisheries sector estimated at P1.2 million. (Photo from Inquirer website) |
[Asia News Communication = Reporter Reakkana] Rice plants in about 2,000 hectares of farmlands in 19 villages in San Miguel and Calumpit towns in Bulacan province were covered in floodwater caused by Tropical Storm “Pepito.”
Floods also hit some 30 fish ponds, affecting 25 operators, according to Felicisima Mungcal, chief of the provincial disaster risk reduction and management office. Damage in the two sectors was pegged at P30 million, Mungcal said. Low-lying villages near Ipo and Bustos dams in Paombong town were also submerged in knee-deep flood when water was released in the watersheds and was worsened by the high tide on Tuesday. Ipo Dam officials released water at 69 cubic meters per second when the stock at the reservoir reached the spilling level of 101 meters above sea level.
The water level at Bustos Dam also reached its 17.34-masl maximum mark that forced the National Irrigation Administration to release water at 375 cms on Tuesday. Constant rains also raised the elevation in Angat Dam by 11 meters on Thursday. The level was 191.59 masl, higher than the dam’s operating mark at 180 m. Pepito also affected 1,616 families or 5,730 people when it triggered strong rains and winds in Aurora and Nueva Ecija provinces, according to the regional disaster risk reduction and monitoring council in Central Luzon.
