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  Today Online 26 Jan 07
Flood respite as prevention plans brought forward
Gracia Chiang

Channel NewsAsia 25 Jan 07
PUB to implement flood management works in affected areas
 By Wong Mun Wai

SINGAPORE: The Public Utilities Board (PUB) is carrying out drainage works to fix areas hit by last year's heavy floods.

Throughout December and January several places across the island experienced record rainfall--overall 766mm of rain was recorded for December 2006, beating the 1954 record of 681mm.

"It is premature to link the recent occurrences to climate change. Although there is an ongoing study to look into the effects of climate change, we are not going to wait for the results before implementing our flood alleviation projects", says Yap Kheng Guan, PUB's Director of Drainage.

"We recognise the inconvenience that flash floods can cause to the public and we strive to minimise these disruptions. Every occurrence of extreme rainfall is a test of our drainage system and the flood alleviation measures that we have installed at the various places."

In preparation for such heavy rain, the PUB put in temporary measures last September in high risk places like Commonwealth Avenue. Among the measures, the agency doubled the number of drainage holes along the Avenue from 10 to 20 holes, but these failed to stop the floods along the Avenue last week.

"Spells of very intense rain put these interim measures to the test. But of course, when January came and we saw another very intense rainfall it shows there is room for improvement", says Mr Yap.

Announcing its flood management plans, the PUB says a S$12.8 million canal at Commonwealth Road is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

Work is also planned for Cuscaden Road, and at the junction of Joan and Olive Roads--areas prone to flooding. At Cuscaden Road, a small dam will be built to slow the flow of water as an interim measure.

Says Mr Yap, "We are fast tracking our plans to raise the road level there. We target to complete this project by June 2007, instead of by October 2007".

At Joan and Olive Roads, a long-term solution to flooding is to replace the earth drain with a larger capacity concrete canal. This is also expected to be completed by October this year, three months ahead of the original schedule.

The PUB says stopping flash floods is an evolving task, subject to changes in Singapore's landscape and rainfall patterns.

The agency says it checks the three locations every year before the monsoon period, as well as construction sites to see nothing is blocking the surrounding drains. - CNA/so/yy

Today Online 26 Jan 07
Flood respite as prevention plans brought forward
Gracia Chiang gracia@mediacorp.com.sg

The most flood-prone areas of Singapore will have extra protection before this year ends. This means that the startling photographs of a bunch of nurseries under water--which were splashed in media reports recently--could become a thing of the past.

The Public Utilities Board (PUB) announced yesterday that it was bringing forward its project to prevent a repeat of the flash floods at Joan Road and Olive Road--the site of the eight nurseries. The earth drain there will be replaced by a wider concrete canal. This will be ready by October, about three months ahead of the original schedule.

Another flood-prone area, Cuscaden Road, will also get relief earlier than planned. Meanwhile, work on a new canal, costing $12.8 million, is already underway in Commonwealth Avenue. It is expected to be ready by the end of this year.

"These are areas that are known to suffer from flooding," said PUB's director of drainage, Mr Yap Kheng Guan.

Before the recent thunderstorms wreaked their havoc, dredging works at Cuscaden Road as well as Joan and Olive Roads had been fairly effective. Still, the danger of flooding has existed in these areas, either because of small canal capacities or because of the natural terrain.

A 30 cm-deep road depression along a 50m stretch of Cuscaden Road, for example, creates a bowl effect where water can be collected. Heavy rainfall within a short time can give rise to flash floods, said Mr Yap. The road level at the junction of Tomlinson and Cuscaden Road will be raised by June.

Over at Commonwealth Avenue, PUB is also taking interim measures such as increasing the number of drainage holes from 10 to 20 and installing 10 small dams to slow the flow of water.

Apart from heavy rains, high tides can also cause flooding. The Marina Barrage project will block seawater from flowing into canals and help flood-prone areas such as Chinatown and Little India.

PUB conducts yearly checks to make sure that there are no drain blockages. It also ensures that construction projects do not contribute to the floods either by obstructing the flow of water or altering the terrain.

"We will not let go of any flash flood," said Mr Yap. "We will look at it and see what we can do."
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