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MANILA - Maynilad Water Services Inc. on Tuesday said it reduced water supply in some areas in Metro Manila due to an increase in sediment content in raw water coming from the Ipo Dam in Bulacan.

Jennifer Rufo, Maynilad's head for Corporate Communication, attributed the increase in sedimentary deposits to the continuous downpour due to the enhanced southwest monsoon.

"Simula po kaninang madaling araw, tumaas ang turbidity concentration, ito po yung sediments sa raw water na nanggagaling sa Ipo Dam. Emergency po ito at dahil diyan, kinailangan po naming mag-reduce ng aming production sa La Mesa Treatment Plant," said Rufo in an interview on DZMM on Tuesday morning.

Maynilad said reducing production would enable it to remove increased sediments from the raw water during treatment before release of potable water to the distribution system.

"Dahil tumaas ang turbidity sa tubig ng Ipo Dam, mas maraming household na maaapektuhan at humaba po ang interruption natin," she explained.

Areas affected by low pressure to no water supply include some barangays in Bulacan, Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas, Valenzuela, Quezon City, Manila, Pasay, Makati, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa and Cavite.

"In our efforts to optimize the limited supply, we are constrained to implement service interruptions daily, until such time as the turbidity situation improves," Maynilad said.

The specific areas that may be affected, as well as the duration of the service interruptions, will vary on a daily basis, depending on the level of turbidity in the raw water coming from Ipo Dam, the company explained.

It likewise advised customers in affected areas to store water when supply is available. The company will also deploy mobile water tankers to deliver potable water to affected areas.

Customers may contact Maynilad through its hotline 1626 or the company's social media accounts for updates and inquiries.

4 DAMS CONTINUE TO RELEASE WATER

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Meanwhile, monsoon rains prompted four dams to open up its gates, weather bureau PAGASA said.

PAGASA Hydrologist Danny Flores said gates have been opened at Ambuklao and Binga in Benguet, San Roque in Pangasinan and Magat in Isabela.

"Ang Magat, as of 6 this morning, bahagya siyang tumaas ng 9 centimeters, nasa 190.01 meters. Bukas ang isang gate so 2 meters ang buka niya," said Flores.

Flores, in another interview on DZMM Tuesday, said these are controlled openings to ensure that dams would not cause rivers to swell.

The level of water at the Ambuklao Dam rose by 25 centimeters, bringing the water level to 751.45 meters.

"Bukas d'yan ang 8 gates, 6 meters ang buka," said Flores.

Six gates were opened at Binga Dam after the water rose by 88 centimeters. The gate opening is at 8.5 meters.

At the San Roque Dam, four gates were opened with 5 meters opening as water increased by 2.39 meters since Monday.

The dam in Pantabangan is now at 202.36, still far from the normal high water level of 216.00 meters.

Like in Pantabangan, gates at the Angat Dam remain closed. Since Monday, the water rose by 3.01 meters, and the reservoir’s level is now at 204.81 meters.

"May magandang idinulot ng pag-ulan dahil napupuno ang mga dams natin especially ang Angat," said Flores.

At Ipo Dam, where Maynilad’s raw water is coming from, the water decreased by 80 centimeters. The level of water at Ipo Dam now is at 101.02 meters and the gate that has been opened since Monday at .03 meters has been closed at 6 a.m. Tuesday.

"Sa protocol natin, bago sa dam release, kailangan 5 hours bago magbukas ang dam inaabisuhan na yung directly na maapektuhan sa dam. Yung babala nakakarating sa tao, sinisiguro natin yun,” he said.