Beyond Flood Waters
It was Tuesday, July 22, when floodwaters took over the land in Malabon and Navotas. Severe floods were aggravated by a damaged flood control gate in Navotas after being hit by a vessel.
Being the eldest of 6, 20 year-old Dion Angelo dela Rosa waded waist-high floodwaters to search for his father, who was detained after having been accused of illegal gambling through a game of kara y krus.
Days after wading through murky floodwaters to reach multiple police stations across Cavite, Navotas and Malabon, his father was discovered in a Caloocan jail cell on July 25. To work on the case and care for his father, dela Rosa continued to travel back and forth through dirty floodwaters. On July 27, the young man passed away after suffering from bouts of fever and chills — another case of leptospirosis.
The case of dela Rosa is just one of many that go by right under our noses. Health risks brought about by flooding are largely preventable, but our countrymen are left with no choice but to wade through disease-laden floodwaters. Media reports and senate hearings have uncovered that since the year 2022, there have been 5,500 flood control projects.
On July 28, investigations launched by President Ferdinand Marcos revealed that many of these flood control projects were substandard. Some anomalies only existed in a written contract or spreadsheet.
While lawmakers and DPWH executives continue to point fingers at each other, the rest of the country suffered as the Habagat season brought relentless southwest winds and excessive rain — putting the country in a cycle of floods.
As of August 9, more than 10 hospitals in the country are now full of leptospirosis cases due to intermittent heavy rains and floods.
“Posible daw na na-leptos daw ako, at ipapa-lab test daw ako. Kaso nga lang hindi kami tumuloy. Baka hindi abutin ang pera namin,” said 32-year-old Russel Agapay from Parañaque, who reports that he has been experiencing symptoms of yellowish eyes, chills, fevers and body malaise for a week.
To save money, Agapay and his family opted for DOH-accredited hospitals, but the hospitals were already at full capacity.
Data from DOH as of June 8, 2025 to August 7, 2025 indicates that more than 2,000 Filipinos are affected by leptospirosis. Dengue cases have also been on the rise, as 8,171 cases have been recorded from July 6 to July 19 nationwide.
As of September 2, DOH reminds that leptospirosis fast lanes have been established and are ready to cater to those who are at risk immediately.
With many Filipinos ill and at-risk, meanwhile, DPWH has uncovered that 421 projects have been confirmed to be “ghost projects” with most hailing from Luzon on October 9.
The Independent Commission of Infrastructure (ICI) launched an investigation on the worth of these projects, ultimately deciding to file at least 15 cases over the 421 suspected “ghost projects”.
“The process is becoming more organized, as we now know what to focus on — identifying the ghost projects,” said Brian Keith Hosaka, ICI Executive Director.
Despite this, on October 13, ICI released a statement saying that they are unable to identify any government official yet involved in anomalous flood control projects.
“As of now, wala pa kami nakikita,” special adviser Rodolfo Azurin says. Hosaka and Azurin claim that charges will be evidence-based.
While investigations continue, super city Bacolod has once again been flooded as heavy rains poured nonstop since the morning of October 14, exposing multiple citizens to flood-borne diseases again. Rescue operations in Barangay Mandalagan were launched just last October 9 when citizens experienced waist-level floods.
The story felt too familiar when the Reclamation Area around SM City Bacolod were plunged into knee-height floods as of 2:00 in the afternoon of October 14. Last 2024, a 639-meter diversion channel long promised to keep Bacolodnons dry was reported to be 35% completed. Spearheaded by the Almana Development Corporation, updates and reports about said diversion channel have not been released for 1 year and 7 months, revealing that the project has been unfinished and non-functional.
The corporation is also in charge of former mayor Albee Benitez’s Bacolod Tree Park project worth 500 million. The project is funded from a 4.4 billion budget loaned from the Development Bank of The Philippines. No information about its progress has been publicly published aside from a groundbreaking ceremony last September 2024. Almana Development Corporation’s website also does not reveal ongoing projects.
The corporation recently went under fire as the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) discovered that their construction activities in Barangay Mailum, Bago City were beyond the boundaries of their existing Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC). The City Engineering Office issued a notice of violation after receiving complaints from Pataan Irrigators’ Association and Mailum Bukidnon Tribe that there has been an increased incidence of flooding and debris from the construction site.
Across the islands of the Philippines, Filipinos continue to trudge through the same path due to necessity and not of choice.
When Filipinos are left with no choice but to wade through floodwaters in sickness and in health, do we still look to the spirit of resilience rooted within ourselves, or are we just left with no choice by those who promised to keep us dry?
LCM || 𝑲𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒚𝒓𝒂 𝑺𝒐