Over 2,000 residents in three low-lying barangays of Norzagaray town in Bulacan were evacuated after their villages were flooded following the release of excess water from Angat and Ipo dams earlier this month.
The town hosts the two dams providing more than 90 percent of Metro Manila’s potable water supply, according to a Philippine News Agency report.
The Angat and Ipo dams started releasing excess water to avoid overflowing, according to the Bulacan Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office.
According to Grace Osido, information officer of the municipal government of Norzagaray, Barangays Matictic, San Mateo and Poblacion were hit by floods after the Angat river overflowed due to the release of excess water coming from the Ipo and Angat dams.
“The floodwaters affected 2,007 individuals, 806 of whom are children, and were brought to evacuation centers in the said villages,” Osido said in the PNA report.
The displaced individuals were temporarily sheltered in three evacuation centers.
The municipal government led by Norzagaray Mayor Elena Germar gave relief goods to the evacuees.
