Angat Dam water level drops anew

MANILA, Philippines — The water level of Angat Dam has started to drop, falling by at least 1.28 meters in the past week, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA).

As of 6 a.m. yesterday, the water level of Angat Dam was at 198.42 meters – 0.20 meters lower than its previous level of 198.62 meters.

While still higher than its minimum operating level of 180 meters, the current water level of Angat Dam is already 11.58 meters below its normal high operating level of 210 to 212

meters.

Officials of the Maynilad Water Services Inc., meanwhile, have warned that the water interruption in Metro Manila will resume before the end of August as the water allocation given by the National Water Resources Board to the two concessionaires remains at 48 cubic meters per second (CMS).

However, the affected customers will be fewer, between 500,000 and 600,000 households, compared to the previous 1.2 million customers affected by the water interruption in April 2023, according to Maynilad president and CEO Ramoncito Fernandez.

Following rains brought by Typhoon Egay and the southwest monsoon in July, Maynilad has implemented an indefinite suspension of the daily water cutoff in Caloocan, Malabon, Manila, Valenzuela, Navotas and Quezon City.

Of the current 48 CMS water allocation for Maynilad and Manila Water, three CMS are allotted to Bulacan, Maynilad senior assistant vice president and corporate affairs and communication division head Marie Antonette de Ocampo said.

De Ocampo added that Maynilad suspended the water interruption after the water level of Ipo Dam in Bulacan improved because of the rains.

Aside from Angat Dam, the water levels of Ambuklao Dam in Benguet also dropped by 0.39 meters from its previous level of 749.57 meters while Pantabangan Dam in Nueva Ecija also dropped by 0.20 meters compared to its previous level of 191.55 meters.

Other the other hand, the water levels of other dams in Luzon improved, including Ipo Dam in Bulacan at 100.59 meters compared to its previous level of 100.04 meters; La Mesa Dam in Quezon City at 79.56 meters compared to its previous level of 79.53 meters; Binga Dam in Benguet at 572.27 meters compared to its previous level of 572.15 meters; San Roque Dam in Pangasinan at 254.43 meters compared to previous level of 254.34 meters; Magat Dam in Isabela at 172.84 meters compared to the previous 172.80 meters, and Caliraya Dam at 286.26 meters compared to its previous level 286.16 meters.

Monsoon rains

The southwest monsoon will bring rains in many areas in Metro Manila, Central and Southern Luzon tomorrow and on Wednesday, according to PAGASA.

PAGASA weather specialist Daniel James Villamil added that central portions of Visayas and Mindanao should expect sunny weather with scattered rains in the next three days.

By Wednesday, more areas will be affected by the southwest monsoon, including the Bicol region, particularly Legaspi City, said Villamil.

“Southwest monsoon will also result in cloudy skies and scattered rains in the western section of Southern Luzon,” Villamil said.