63 villages in Bulacan submerged in floodwaters

MANILA, Philippines - Continuous rains brought by tropical storm-enhanced southwest monsoon immersed almost half of Bulacan province with 63 villages awash in floods on Monday.

Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) executive officer Liz Mungcal said on Monday that the areas experienced floods reaching one to four feet.

Mungcal said 14 villages in the city of Meycauayan and 26 areas in the coastal town of Hagonoy were most affected by severe flooding with two to four feet deep waters.

Flooding in Hagonoy was particularly worsened as the Manila Bay overflowed, Mungcal said.

Six villages in Marilao, eight in Obando, seven in Bulakan and two in Bocaue were also hit by floods that went as deep as four feet.

Mungcal said that discharge from Bulacan's major dams Ipo and Bustos also contributed to the flooding in the said areas.

Officials were forced to open the radial gates of Ipo Dam on Sunday evening and released about 242 cubic meters per second after its maximum capacity of 101 meters was nearly breached.

Water elevation in nearby Angat Dam, however, remained below its spilling level as of Monday morning.

Governor Wilhelmino Sy-Alvarado had earlier declared suspension of work and classes in the province.

Alvarado has also instructed rescue teams to facilitate evacuation and relief of residents in affected areas.