Race against time ahead of rainy season

Race against time ahead of rainy season

By Tin Yadanar Htun   |   Monday, 05 May 2014

The race is on to keep Yangon dry this rainy season. The committee formed to oversee the K12.23 billion project to prevent flooding says much of the work has been done, but it is not clear that preparations will be complete before the rains come.

Workers dig a drain in North Dagon on April 28 as part of a project to prevent flooding. (Aung Htay Hlaing/The Myanmar Times)

Box culverts and drainage channels are being dug all over the city, said U Ye Thu Win, deputy director of the committee. He said it was the first flood prevention project in the city for 20 years and includes government officials and private sector representatives.

The money comes from a national fund for natural disaster prevention.

"The box culverts and drains will be done. Drainage ditches will be dug during the rainy season on a ward-by-ward basis. Garbage clearance is being done systematically," U Ye Thu Win said.

The work is focusing on four outlying townships at particular risk of flooding because of the many rivers and streams that run through them: North Dagon, South Dagon, East Dagon and Dagon Seikkan.

"The four Dagon townships have many sluice gates and ditches, which is why we are concentrating on them. We're also dredging the rivers," said U Ye Thu Win.

Dagon Seikkan resident U Mya Aung said he hoped the measures would have an impact. "We always suffer flooding during the rainy season," he said.

Source: http://www.news.myanmaronlinecentre.com/2014/05/06/race-against-time-ahead-of-rainy-season/