HEAVY FLOODING hit UST and surrounding streets on Wednesday, July 24, as monsoon rains, intensified by super typhoon “Carina,” caused waist-deep waters, reminiscent of the flooding from typhoon “Ondoy” 15 years ago.
Waist-deep floods were seen at Plaza Mayor, where the UST block letters had tumbled down before they were removed, and at the UST Open Field.
Restaurants and cafes in the UST Carpark shut down due to ankle-deep floodwater inside.
According to Assoc. Prof. Juliano Parena Jr., director of the UST Campus Safety and Security Office, flooding at the San Martin de Porres Building, which houses the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, College of Nursing, and College of Rehabilitation Sciences, reached 18 inches.
St. Raymund’s Building, whose ground floor is occupied by the Faculty of Arts and Letters, had waist-deep flooding, he said.
The Main Building, whose ground floor is home to administrative offices and the Faculty of Civil Law, and the Fr. Roque Ruaño, O.P. Building, where the Faculty of Engineering is located, saw eight inches of floodwater.
“Right now, we are focusing on preventing property damage due to the water that entered the ground floor level of some buildings,” he told the Varsitarian on Wednesday afternoon.
“As for the people on the campus, they are safe as per the last report from security officers onsite,” he added.
Classes and office work at UST have been suspended since Tuesday. They will remain suspended tomorrow, July 25.
Parena said evacuations were not necessary as only guards, maintenance personnel, student-athletes, and Dominican fathers were inside the campus on Wednesday.
Student-athletes on campus were provided with food from UST’s partner concessionaires, according to UST’s athletics director Fr. Rodel Cansancio, O.P.
NEWS UPDATE: Student athletes living in UST have been provided with food from UST’s partner concessionaires, IPEA Director Fr. Rodel Cansancio, O.P. tells the Varsitarian. They received bread from Tinapayan and meals from Eva’s and Prime Plate.
Food stalls in the UST Carpark… pic.twitter.com/iqzwWiGPwj
— The Varsitarian (@varsitarianust) July 24, 2024
Parena urged Thomasians to take precautionary measures as the heavy rains persisted.
“Thomasians, do shelter in place. Do not go out due to hazards from floods. Stay higher and dry,” Parena said.
“For those still with electricity, charge your phones and flashlights. If you still have an AM radio, be on monitor for any emergency announcements in your area.”
Metro Manila has been placed under a state of calamity due to the downpours and flooding caused by the southwest monsoon intensified by “Carina.”
Carina, which was upgraded to a super typhoon according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration’s 5 p.m. bulletin, brought 376 millimeters of rain from July 23 to 24, based on data collected by the state weather bureau at its science garden in Quezon City.
This was still significantly less than the 455 millimeters of rain that typhoon “Ondoy” brought in 2009, which caused severe flooding and left 3,000 people stranded at the Sampaloc campus.
UST has since installed a new stormwater drainage system capable of holding about 2.5 million liters of water. However, the floodwaters appeared to have surpassed this capacity.
As “Carina” heads toward Taiwan, at least 12 people have been killed and 600,000 more displaced, including 35,000 who have taken refuge in emergency shelters, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.
