With heavy rains increasing in frequency, Quezon City authorities said an information drive against the hazards of living in areas declared as “danger zones’’ will ease rescue operations and minimize casualty.

Joselito Cabungcal chief of the Quezon City Engineering Department (QCED) said the key to saving lives is for the local government units (LGU) and agencies like the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to join hands in driving out informal squatters away from rivers, ponds, canals, esteros and easements of other major waterways.

After being rescued by various emergency groups, some informal settlers have returned to their shanties located in the vicinity of the danger zones again putting their lives in peril, Cabungcal said.

The MMDA earlier said that the presence of thousands of squatter families near the banks of waterways had given government and volunteer rescue teams difficult times during typhoons, earthquakes and other disasters.

Aside from being eyesores, the occupants of the shanties and other illegal structures on the danger zones have made the rivers, esteros and other major waterways their exclusive dumping ground of garbage causing the water to overflow and flood the major roads and inner streets during heavy rains.

Due to the huge volume of trash thrown, the rivers have turned murky emitting foul stench and exposing the public into all forms of health issues as the unhealthy environment became the breeding ground of virus and bacteria.

The local health centers have reported numerous cases of respiratory diseases while incidents of dengue, diarrhea, cholera and skin ailments are common in adults and children living on danger zones.

Cabungcal reiterated that de-clogging, de-silting and cleaning of inlets, drainage mains, esteros, ponds, canals and other major waterways remain an all-year-round priority of the city government.

He explained that trash thrown by passersby on the streets usually find their way and clog the inlets, resulting into sporadic pocket flooding incidents that earned the ire of the public.

Cabungcal said that authorities are often criticized for frequent floods but inspections show that floods are usually caused by clogged inlets leading to canals and waterways which remain free of debris.

He called on residents to cooperate with authorities in ensuring the inlets are cleared of garbage.

MMDA General Manager Robert Nacianceno said with its continuous flood control task the agency had widened Pasig River from 50 meters to 150 meters in some areas to allow the unimpeded flow of water and prevent them from spilling over the low-lying areas of the metropolis.

Aside from removing illegal structures and extending the water way of Pasig River, the MMDA is expediting the construction of box culverts and pumping stations that will ease flooding at the Camanava (Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas, Valenzuela) area and parts of Sampaloc, Manila.

Cabungcal who is in constant coordination with the MMDA added that his men have continuously replaced stolen previously installed signboards that warn the public that they are standing on the danger zone where building structures and indiscriminate dumping of garbage are prohibited.