BACOLOD City – The City Legal Office (CLO) of the Bacolod City Government has recommended the demolition of a private bridge at the Kabiguan Creek in Purok Mabinuligon, Barangay Sum-ag here to prevent flooding in the area.
On Monday, October 21, City Legal Officer Romeo Carlos Ting Jr. together with the City Engineering Office (CEO) personnel inspected the creek after receiving information that the bridge causes flooding in the said barangay.
Based on their assessment, the creek is the outfall of the water from Bangga Tomaro, causing it to overflow the bridge.
“There is a need to remove the bridge after we have seen the situation. The bridge measured five meters wide and 12 meters in distance,” he added.
He said the owner of the bridge is amenable to the recommendation of the city government to remove the structure with the proposal to construct a new one.
But, Ting said the owner must donate their property so that the city government can construct a new bridge.
To recall, the City Council last year passed a resolution requesting the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), CEO and CLO to investigate the alleged illegal construction of the said bridge which impedes the natural flow of water and causes alleged flooding in several areas of the city.
Councilor Jude Thaddeus Sayson said though it is a private property but it causes hazard to hundreds of residents in the area, adding that “you can invoke police power in order to mitigate the situation.”
On Monday, the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) reported that over 50 families from several puroks in barangays Sum-ag and Pahanocoy were displaced due to flooding./PN
