The Marikina City local government raised the third alarm at the Marikina River on Wednesday morning, July 24, after the water level reached 18 meters due to the heavy downpour.
As of 10:56 a.m., the river’s water level rose to 18.5 meters.
The first alarm was raised at around 5:30 a.m. when it hit 15 meters. The second alarm was raised at around 6:45 a.m. when the water level reached 16 meters.
With the third alarm raised, the local government ordered forced evacuations in all affected areas to keep the residents safe from the possible danger flooding.
The local government said that a total of 945 families or 5,583 individuals were already evacuated to the 23 evacuation centers in the city as of Wednesday morning.
Meanwhile, Marikina Mayor Marcy Teodoro assured that food and medicines are provided in the evacuation centers to meet the needs of evacuees.
City Rep. Maan Teodoro assured the residents that the city's rescue teams are ready to respond.
“Nag-iikot tayo kasama ang ating on-ground teams para makita ang sitwasyon sa ating lungsod. Handa rin po ang ating rescue teams na mabilisang rumesponde at umalalay sa pangangailangan nating mga taga-Marikina (We are going around with our on-ground teams to see the situation in our city. Our rescue teams are also ready to quickly respond and assist),” she said.
As of 8 a.m., PAGASA placed Metro Manila under the red rainfall warning level, which can cause serious flooding in flood-prone areas.