QC ‘catch basin’ barangay boosts flood readiness

As tropical storm "Hagupit" enters the Philippine Area of Responsibility, residents of Barangay Tatalon are bracing for the rainy season with nearly completed flood mitigation projects designed to protect one of the city’s most vulnerable “catch basins.”

While the state weather bureau PAGASA forecasts no direct impact from "Hagupit," locally named "Caloy," the 96-hectare barangay remains on high alert.

Tatalon, home to more than 63,000 residents, sits in a low-lying area of the Fourth District where runoff from higher-lying neighborhoods like Talayan and Roxas frequently causes inundation.

“Even with just a little rain — no typhoon, but heavy rainfall — we expect that flooding will happen,” barangay administrator Raymond Bituin Jr. said in an interview.

To address decades of chronic flooding along Gregorio Araneta and E. Rodriguez Sr. avenues, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is finalizing a multi-phase drainage rehabilitation project.

Phases 2 through 5 along Gregorio Araneta Avenue were completed in the first quarter of the year.

The P94.5-million Phase 2 project, funded under the 2024 General Appropriations Act, involved replacing narrow 36-inch pipes with dual 1.5-meter high-density polyethylene pipes.

During a February inspection, DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon said the new system effectively doubles the drainage capacity to funnel rainwater into the San Juan River.

Construction for Phase 1 along E. Rodriguez Sr. Avenue is ongoing and is expected to be finished by the end of May.

Tatalon officials say they are not relying solely on infrastructure. Bituin assured that the barangay has established a protocol for disseminating weather advisories and holds emergency meetings with village leaders as soon as threats emerge.