City blames debris buildup for Central Market pipe burst

By Joseph Bernard A. Marzan

The Iloilo City government said on Monday, Jan. 5, that debris clogging the Central Market’s drainage system caused recent leaks that eventually damaged tiles on the market’s exterior.

The city government, through the Local Economic Enterprise Office and the City Engineer’s Office, conducted a joint inspection with SM Prime Holdings Inc. on Monday, following reports of damaged tiles on Friday, Jan. 2.

Mayor Raisa Treñas said in a statement that rainwater was unable to flow into the city’s drainage system due to the debris buildup, resulting in backflow that led to the pipe burst and tile damage.

She added that an additional water pump will be installed to help speed up water flow to the main drainage system.

“Based on findings, we determined that there were debris that clogged the Central Market’s drainage system, which was the reason a great volume of rainwater was unable to flow to the city’s main drainage system,” Treñas said. “This caused water to accumulate, resulting in damage to the tiles.”

“The debris was immediately cleared so that water could flow. Likewise, water pumps will be added to the market so that water will be pumped out to the main drainage faster, as an additional preventive measure,” she added.

The city government also reported that eight vendors filed damage claims totaling PHP 311,295 due to the leakage and damaged tiles.

The claims include three native products vendors seeking PHP 229,895 in damages and five rice and grains vendors estimating PHP 81,400 in losses for 74 sacks.

“These claims will be submitted to the contractor for assessment, and a 100 percent refund will be given to affected vendors,” the statement said. “The refund will be released immediately, as it will be advanced by the contractor so vendors will not have to wait.”

The mayor assured the public that the city government will closely monitor the area and implement measures to prevent similar incidents from recurring.