‘Incorrect’ gutter system caused flooding in Mactan-Cebu Airport, says operator
A GUTTER system that was installed incorrectly was the cause of the flooding inside the new terminal of the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) on Tuesday, according to the government’s private partner operating the facility.
“At the time of the incident, a rework of the gutter by the contractor was ongoing. The contractor had incorrectly installed the gutter system that was designed for the Link Bridge. This is the reason for the Link Bridge and Drop-off Zone being unduly exposed to rain,” the GMR Megawide Cebu Airport Corp. said in a statement on Thursday.
Photos of the flood inside the Terminal 2 were posted on social media and went viral.
“Unfortunately, GMCAC only noticed in mid-July that the installed gutters did not meet the actual design. The company immediately began corrective work; however, the continuous heavy rains in Cebu have been severely affecting construction,” GMCAC said.
According to GMCAC, the ongoing corrective work was expected to be finished on or before August 20.
PHOTO BY XIG ABADILLA
GMCAC said that it has initiated temporary work that would solve 80 percent of the problem while looking into possible materials that may be installed on the sides of the Link Bridge to prevent the entry of water, such as side grills or a special roll-down plastic, in case the problem persists.
The concessionaire said that it was also studying the installation of additional drains in the Link Bridge area.
“GMCAC assures the flying public that it is working on solutions that will ensure that these kinds of situations, no matter how slight, will not be repeated,” GMCAC said.
“Once the gutter installation is corrected, the rainwater from the Link Bridge canopy will be connected back to the rain water drainage system. In effect, this will solve the exposure of Link Bridge and its Drop-Off zone to rain water,” it added.
MCIA is currently the second largest airport hub in the country, next to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
As its new 65,500-square meter terminal 2, dedicated to international flights, was opened on July 1, the airport’s capacity was expected to grow to 12.5 million passengers annually from the previous 4.5-million.
Construction of terminal 2 costs P17.5 billion.
President Rodrigo Duterte inaugurated the facility last June 7. REICELENE JOY N. IGNACIO
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