THE Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has dispatched vital emergency response equipment and personnel to Tarlac City to assist residents stranded by the partial collapse of the Aquino Bridge following last month’s heavy monsoon rains.
The relief operation was organized following direct instructions from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who called for immediate government action after learning that local students and workers were forced to navigate the dangerous 100-meter river crossing using improvised airbeds.
Cabinet Secretary Benhur Abalos led the official send-off ceremony at the MMDA Motorcycle Riding Academy in Pasig City on behalf of the President.
Abalos expressed gratitude for the agency’s swift mobilization, noting that the priority is to protect residents while permanent repairs on the bridge remain underway.
MMDA Chairman Atty. Don Artes outlined the deployed assets aimed at providing a secure transit alternative.
The agency dispatched 50 modular pontoon floater units to assemble a floating footbridge equipped with bamboo handrails.
To complement the structure, the MMDA provided eight engine-operated rubber boats, 50 life vests, and four high-clearance trucks capable of navigating floodwaters up to six feet deep.
Additionally, 45 members of the MMDA Public Safety Office have been stationed in Tarlac to construct and monitor the pontoon bridge.
Artes affirmed that the equipment and safety personnel will remain on-site for as long as necessary to guarantee public safety.
Tarlac City Mayor Susan Yap personally inspected the incoming equipment and welcomed the prompt intervention.
She emphasized that the Aquino Bridge serves as a vital transportation artery connecting Western Tarlac to Pangasinan, and the temporary pontoon system will significantly ease local travel while structural engineers test the bridge’s remaining piers and assess the feasibility of installing temporary steel supports.