The Quezon City government, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), and Project NOAH inspected Matalahib Creek on Wednesday to monitor the demolished portion of the pumping station in the flood-control project area.

Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte, together with DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon and Project NOAH Executive Director Mahar Lagmay, conducted follow-up inspection to the unfinished P94 million budgeted Matalahib Creek pumping station that sections of the project allegedly intensified flooding in nearby barangays.

During the inspection, Belmonte pointed out the measures being implemented by the local government to address flooding in the city in line with the Drainage Master Plan with the assistance of the UP-Resilience Institute.

“This includes dredging, declogging, and the continued construction of detention and retention ponds and basins,” the mayor said in a social media post.

The city government official also said it continues to conduct dredging operations with the assistance of San Miguel Corporation.

Meanwhile, the DPWH reported the continuous clearing and dredging operations of the government, as well as the widening of waterways such as canals, esteros, drainage systems, and rivers, under Oplan Kontra Baha (OKB) in preparation for the rainy season. 

“The OKB initiative focuses on areas that are frequently affected by severe flooding, such as Metro Manila, the Ilocos Region, Cagayan Valley, Tarlac, and Naga, as well as several parts of the Visayas and Mindanao, including Cebu, Iloilo, Bacolod, Cagayan de Oro, and Maguindanao,” the agency said in a statement.