Pasig: Drainage leak caused cracks

MANILA, Philippines — The Pasig City government yesterday started repairs on the cracks found along a road in the Ortigas business district after authorities ruled out seismic activity and liquefaction as possible causes.

“The cracks on the road were caused by a crack on a drainage line. This led to water seepage that then ultimately caused the erosion of the topsoil of Topaz Road,” according to an assessment made by city engineers, a copy of which was provided by the city public information office.

The city engineers were set to repair the road following the deployment of ground-penetrating radar yesterday morning.

The cracks, said to have stretched up to 50 meters and with crevices over 20 inches wide, were found before 6 p.m. on Sunday. The segment was closed to traffic.

The assessment cited the findings by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources ruling out the presence of a fault line and liquefaction as causes of the cracks.

The city engineering office said the affected drainage line is connected to most of the storm drains in the buildings along Topaz Road. This created strong pressure that the system could not contain, causing cracks in the line.

However, the city engineers said the definite cause of the cracked drainage line was still “under investigation.”

The cracks were found between a construction site and a condominium building along Topaz Road.

On Monday night, workers prepared pipes that will supply water to residents of four condominium buildings affected by the drainage line leak.