Floodwaters leave behind piles of trash in Marikina

MANILA, Philippines - The floodwaters that hit Marikina City this week not only destroyed millions in property but also left behind tons of garbage.

Residents who returned to their homes yesterday were greeted with piles of garbage in the streets.

Eastern Police District (EPD) director Chief Superintendent Miguel Laurel said that in Barangay Tumana, the hardest hit by the flooding, at least five tons of garbage had been left in the street.

“This should serve as a lesson among us because the evidence shows that garbage also causes flooding. So we must be disciplined enough to dispose our garbage properly,” Laurel said in an interview.

Laurel said he also received reports of piles of garbage scattered in the streets of 15 other affected barangays.

The EPD director said Senior Superintendent Gabriel Lopez, Marikina City police chief, raised the issue during a city council meeting yesterday.

The city government would conduct a cleaning operation today, the city council assured Lopez.

The residents compared the situation to the aftermath of typhoon “Ondoy,” when it took the city government months to clear the streets and declog canals of garbage.