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Mayor’s office ready to aid DPW with clearing flood
With plans to enlarge Saipan’s sidewalk pipes still unclear, the Saipan Mayor’s Office looks at working with the Department of Public Works for now in getting rid of floods that result from increased rainfall on the island.
With Typhoon Soulik and Typhoon Cimaron passing through the Marianas back-to-back this week, Saipan experienced heavy rainfall for several days, resulting in floods in several areas, including in Garapan.
Although the Saipan Mayor’s Office is in charge of beautifying the island, Mayor David M. Apatang clarified with Saipan Tribune that drainages are a jurisdiction of DPW.
Despite that, however, Apatang reiterates that his office is ready to assist DPW if needed.
“If DPW needs our help, we work with them. That is their responsibility—all the drainage. You can see them going around clearing the drainages everyday and during the storm,” Apatang said. “We are always willing to assist in any way we can. If we see that there is something that needs to be done, we do it—we don’t wait for anybody.”
On Monday, when the Governor’s Office first issued typhoon warnings because of Cimaron, the Mayor’s Office was fully activated to clear debris.
“All crews were mobilized and divided into the northern, central, and southern areas of Saipan. They focused on picking up green waste—branches, fallen trees, etc.,” noted Joann T. Aquino, Apatang’s director of field operations.
“We were just filling up trailers as much as we can and going around until the Marpi Landfill was opened,” she said, adding that the landfill was closed around 12:30pm that day.
Aquino noted that the Mayor’s Office mobilized their backhoe, their dump truck, and their claw truck. She was not able to provide the total tonnage of the collected debris.
