100 join cleanup drive in Mandaue

CEBU, Philippines - Almost 100 volunteers joined yesterday morning the cleanup drive initiated by the newly formed Mandaue City Drainage System and Flood Control Management Committee to prevent flooding.

City administrator James Abadia said most of the canals were opened and the debris removed. He said some of the canals were opened for the first time since these were built.

Construction equipment and manpower came from the Cebu Contractors Association, FF. Cruz Company, the DPWH, and the Mandaue City Engineering Office.

Workers from city hall, Barangay Clean and Green, and non-governmental organizations also joined the cleanup which started at 8 a.m. and ended past 1 p.m.

In barangay Centro alone, dump trucks collected more than 50 sacks of waste.

Earlier, the committee had said the cleanup will be a regular Saturday activity in the city.

Last October 7, most barangays in the city were submerged in floodwater.

This incident prompted the city council to declare the city under state of calamity.