Teener drowns at Manila Water pipeline; water in danger of contamination?

Water might now be in danger of contamination after a 19-year-old boy who was out picking fruits from trees drowned and got stuck inside one of the ventilation chambers of the Manila Water in Quezon City the other day.

Victim Randy Diaz, of Escopa 3 Bliss, Bgy. Escopa, plunged about three meters deep into the chamber and was immediately swept away by the strong current inside the water mainline. His body has yet to be recovered.

Customers of the concessionaire expressed fears that the water would be contaminated, but Manila Water officials insisted that it is still "safe and potable."

"We assure the public that the water we provide is free from taint and defilement despite this unfortunate incident. We have added more chlorine to the pipelines to disinfect the water," a Manila Water official said in a press conference.

Details showed that Diaz and five companions went to the backyard of the house of one Armando Isla located at 115 Bignay Street, Bgy. Quirino. The victim is said to be a close relative of Isla’s.

Two air vent chambers are in the backyard of the house, around four meters from its rear wall. Diaz, who was picking mango and santol fruits from nearby trees, was seen jumping from the two-meter high concrete wall to the adjacent roof of the Manila Water to get a better view of the fruits.

On his third jump, the concrete slab which served as the cover of the chamber, suddenly collapsed. Diaz fell into the ventilation area where he died. His friends tried to rescue him, but he was already swept away downstream.

As of yesterday afternoon, the victim’s body was still stuck inside the Old Balara pipeline, which stretches all the way to some areas in Makati.

Manila Water said that they have shutdown several pipelines and are disposing "millions of liters of water" in the hope that they would flush Diaz’s body out into the San Juan reservoir, which is no longer in use.

"This could take several days before we can finally retrieve the body, but we are doing everything we can right now," Manila Water officials said.

Because several lines have been closed temporarily, water interruptions are expected in the areas of San Juan, Mandaluyong and Makati. Manila Water said this accident is causing "millions of pesos in loses."