DepEd, Mandaue readying for rains, school opening

CEBU, Philippines - The Mandaue City government and the Department of Education have been on their toes preparing for the start of classes in public schools as well as for the advent of the rainy season.

City administrator James Abadia said a city-owned vacuum truck has been drawing garbage that had found its way from drainage systems to prevent flooding such as in Highway Seno.

 The city will buy another vacuum truck next month.

“We’re constantly helping DepEd (Department of Education) clean schools,” Abadia said.

Abadia said additional classrooms will be built in the months to come since the city has been looking for partners through a Private-Public Partnership (PPP) scheme as part of the corporate social responsibility of some private entities.

Abadia also said the city doesn’t intend to close flood-prone schools but will find ways to address the problem. 

The identified flood prone schools in the city are Guizo Elementary School, Basak Elementary School, and Tipolo National High School.

Earlier, DepEd’s administrative officer Benjamin Tiongson said aside from cleaning canals, the ground floor of school buildings in flood-prone campuses has been elevated to prevent floodwater from seeping into classrooms.  (FREEMAN)