Some 15 shanties erected in Sto. Rosario River in Pateros have been torn down, clearing up the waterway, the municipal government reported Thursday.

The squatters’ shanties, authorities noted, were not built along the riverbanks but in the river itself, putting its occupants in ever-present danger.

Pateros Mayor Joey Medina said the displaced residents have been relocated to the newly-built Gawad Kalinga (GK) houses that served as an evacuation site for displaced families during the wrath of typhoon “Ondoy.”

Nearly 100 families availed themselves of new homes under the GK housing program, which has been in place since October 2007.

Medina said the demolition of the shanties as well as the subsequent clean-up and declogging of Sto. Rosario River was done as a means to ease flooding in the area.

Pateros is among several areas in Metro Manila that is still submerged in flood six weeks after the passage of “Ondoy.” Over 4,500 families were displaced during the height of the deluge.

The demolition was carried out jointly by the Engineering Department, Environmental Sanitation Center, Municipal Social Welfare Development Office, Urban Poor Affairs Office and office of the Mayor’s Executive Assistant.

In the meantime, life is slowly getting back to normal for Pateros residents.

The municipal government said the quality of the services it renders to the public has not been adversely affected by the flood.

It announced that it has begun accepting applications for passports through its “Mobile Passporting” program in conjunction with the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).

Local residents have until Nov. 13, 2009 to secure passport application forms and until Nov. 19, 2009 to submit their filled-out application forms for pre-processing.