ILOILO City — City authorities have launched a probe into a drainage system failure at the Iloilo Central Market, even as the Local Economic Enterprise Office (LEEO) guaranteed full reimbursement to vendors whose goods were damaged by a water backflow incident triggered by heavy rains on January 2.
LEEO head Maricel Mabaquiao said inspections intensified after the incident to pinpoint the cause of the backflow and ensure the drainage system can withstand excess rainwater, especially now that the market has already been turned over to the city government.
“We inspected the Central Market again, and we will also proceed to the Terminal Market,” Mabaquiao said, adding that the checks aim to determine what went wrong and prevent a repeat.
She said while the contractor has already repaired the damaged floor tiles, the focus has shifted to diagnosing the drainage issue.
“We inspected the drainage to determine what caused the water to backflow and to avoid the same thing from happening again, especially during heavy rains,” she said.
During the initial walkthrough, Mabaquiao said the market’s rainwater facility appeared operational.
“What we noticed was the excess rainwater in the drainage that caused the backflow,” she said, noting that the LEEO and the City Engineer’s Office assessed whether the lines were clogged and if they could accommodate large volumes of rainwater.
“It’s actually good that we detected the deficiencies early. These issues are usually seen once operations start, which is why we encouraged vendors to operate so we could immediately identify and address any problems,” added Mabaquiao.
On compensation, Mabaquiao assured affected vendors of full reimbursement for damaged goods.
“We personally went to the vendors, talked to them, and requested their inventory. The market in-charge validated the damages. Once the investigation report with the attached inventory is completed, they will be refunded 100 percent,” she said.
She added that the total cost of damages is still being finalized pending the completion of the report, expected within the day, and stressed that repairs were undertaken immediately after the incident.
“If there are issues, they are immediately reported to the contractor. Vendors report their concerns directly to LEEO, and we make sure they are addressed right away,” she said./PN
