THREE days of monsoon rains spawned by Typhoon Carina that hit the northeastern part of the country brought flooding in many parts of Luzon that did not spare Pangasinan, spawning flash floods in Sta. Barbara, Calasiao, Dagupan City, Lingayen, San Fabian, Mangaldan, Labrador and other towns and evacuation by affected families.

And the flood is still rising in some areas even if the downpour has them polarity stopped.

Per an emergency alert from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Center at 5:42 a.m. on July 25, Pangasinan and the neighboring province of La Union were still under orange rainfall and under threat from intense rain, flooding and soil erosion, and asked everyone to take the necessary precaution.

The day before, Pangasinan and La Union were under the higher red rainfall alert or continuing intense heavy rains.

The Sinocalan River in Sta. Barbara, which drains its water to Dagupan City before exiting to the Lingayen Gulf is under close monitoring as its level of water has already reached 6.80 meters above sea level or near the critical level of 7.0 masl.

Classes in all public and private schools in all levels and work in government and private offices in Dagupan City and Pangasinan remain suspended as local government units were preparing to evacuate their constituents affected by flooding.

Reminding that Dagupan is the catch basin of all water from the highlands,  Mayor Belen Fernandez opened the Dagupan City People’s Astrodome as an evacuation center for those fleeing from their flooded homes and communities.

Fernandez, in another early morning inspection on July 26, noted that all the roads that were elevated by the DPWH were not under water. As usual, the intersection of Burgos Street, Perez Boulevard and Tapuac Road was submerged but remains passable to all types of motor vehicles.

But she assured Dagupenos that this stretch will also be elevated as the DPWH already secured  funding for the project that will have a water outflow to the Pantal River near Nazareth Hospital.

The level of water of the San Roque Dam along the Agno River in San Manuel town as of 5:00 a.m. of July 26 was 239.06 meter above sea level, from 233.47 masl at 6:00 a.m. on July 25. San Roque’s level is 280 masl.

However, the level of water of the downstream of the Agno River crisscrossing various towns as observed by the Agno River Basin Flood Forecasting and Warning Center of DOST-Pagasa based in Tumana Rosales, Pangasinan is still rising.

Also under watch were various other allied rivers draining their water to the Agno River, including the Camiling River that overflowed its banks and now bringing flood to several barangays of Mangatarem and Urbiztondo.

Meanwhile, the Villaverde Road from San Nicolas, Pangasinan to Sta. Fe, Nueva Vizcaya was not passable due to landslides in Barangay Malico. (Leonardo Micua)

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