ILOILO City — Substandard workmanship — not overloading — has been identified as the root cause of structural defects in the P315-million Buhang flyover here.
Public Works Secretary Vivencio “Vince” Dizon made the assertion following an inspection of the flyover on April 15, contradicting earlier assumptions that heavy vehicle loads contributed to the damage.
“Yung cause hindi overloading. Ang cause substandard ‘yung workmanship niya eh. So ngayon we redo,” Dizon said.
The defects, which included falling concrete in several portions of the structure, forced authorities to close sections of the flyover in February and order extensive retrofitting.
Dizon directed Department of Public Works and Highways – Region 6 and the Iloilo City District Engineering Office (DPWH-ICDEO) to accelerate repair works, emphasizing urgency amid rising fuel prices that have burdened motorists affected by the prolonged closure.
“Let’s try to open this by April 30, pipilitin natin. Basta push lang tayo ng push,” he told DPWH-6 director Engr. Denise Maria Ayag and other officials.
Ayag said retrofitting works are now about 50 percent complete, with contractor F. Gurrea Construction, Inc. addressing structural deficiencies uncovered through rebound hammer tests and micropiling assessments.
She explained that several spans of the flyover slabs had to be redone after tests revealed compromised integrity, which contributed to delays in the repair timeline.
Dizon earlier ordered the contractor to shoulder the cost of redoing defective portions of the project following the discovery of construction flaws.
The Buhang flyover, which spans 340 linear meters with a width of 10.34 meters, was opened to motorists on May 13, 2023 after construction delays caused by weather disturbances and sourcing difficulties for quarry materials./PN
