Mindanao鈥檚 longest bridge shows potholes聽2 months after opening
TUBOD, LANAO DEL NORTE, Philippines — Just two months since it was opened in September, portions of the asphalt pavement of the P7.37-billion 3.17-kilometer Panguil Bay Bridge, considered the longest water-spanning bridge in Mindanao, had developed potholes and depressions, raising suspicion of substandard works on the bridge.
Top officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), however, assured they were addressing the damage to keep the bridge safe for public use.
Teresita Bauzon, project director of the DPWH Unified Project Management Office (Upmo)-Roads Management Cluster 2, said in a statement Monday that the defects on the Panguil Bay Bridge, which links Tangub City of Misamis Oriental and Tubod town in Lanao del Norte, were confined only on the asphalt pavement and did not affect its structural integrity.
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She said the damage had been caused by overloaded trucks passing through the bridge, with the onset of the rainy season aggravating the damage on the asphalt overlay.
“It has been observed that trucks beyond 30 tons have been allowed to pass the bridge, affecting the asphalt overlay,” the DPWH statement added, quoting engineer Tae Sik Youn, the project manager of the South Korean contractor Namkwang Kukdong Gumgwang Joint Venture (NKG-JV).
Article continues after this advertisementYoun said Mindanao Rock, a local subcontractor for the bridge project, had conducted immediate repair in the presence of Korean engineers and had replaced the damaged portions of the asphalt overlay of the bridge.
Article continues after this advertisementNKG-JV and the DPWH-Upmo immediately investigated the damage after the posts of a commuter went viral on social media last week.
Lanao del Norte Gov. Imelda Quibranza-Dimaporo also ordered the police to closely monitor the daily commute at the bridge.
Corrected
DPWH officials, however, assured the damaged asphalt layers had been “rectified to high standards” and that the box girders and main structural components of the bridge remained unaffected.
Bauzon said Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan and Senior Undersecretary Emil Sadain had directed NKG-JV to replace the damaged asphalt pavement at no additional cost, as the completion certificate for the project had not yet been issued.
Bauzon said an assessment done by DPWH and project consultant Yooshin-Pyunghwa-Kyongho showed that a number of trucks that passed through the bridge had exceeded its 30-ton design capacity.
She said that after the bridge’s opening on Sept. 27, some surface damage appeared on the asphalt pavement due to the overloaded vehicles. Torrential rains then worsened the damage, as rainwater led to further pavement deformation and the expansion of potholes in affected areas.
To prevent further damage, portable weighing scales were installed at both ends of the bridge, managed by Misamis Occidental’s 2nd District Engineering Office in Tangub City and by the Lanao del Norte 1st District Engineering Office in Tubod.
“But (a) 24/7 monitoring has been limited due to funding constraints,” Bauzon added.
“We can prevent further deterioration by restricting overloaded vehicles from entering the bridge,” said Sadain in the same DPWH statement.
