Nuku'alofa flooding to drain faster [1]
Thursday, June 6, 2013 - 16:54. Updated on Monday, September 9, 2013 - 18:40.
Pahu home flooded after the building of new Railway Road. February 2012.
By Linny Folau
Severe flooding in low-lying areas of Nuku'alofa, and the stagnation of flood and waste waters in homes and schools is expected to ease in some areas of the capital, following the completion in December of a five-year multi-million Integrated Urban Development Sector Project that includes roads building and rehabilitation of drainage systems.
The US$14.2 million project, which started in 2008, is funded by the Asian Development Bank with a grant of US$11.3 million (about T$22m) while the Government of Tonga is spending around US$2.4 million.
Malakai Vakasiuola, the project's deputy team leader, whose local company SMEC-ITS is contracted to implement the work for the Ministry of Infrastructure, said that by the end of December the drainage systems should be fully connected and people should see the impact and difference of the new drainage then. He said the reason why some areas in Nuku'alofa experienced extensive flooding this year from the heavy rainfall was because the drainage work had not been completed and the new drains were not connected at the time.
"The work we are implementing is based on areas pre-decided in a survey done by a previous company and team. It covers three core areas of the road, drainage and sanitation. A fourth part of non-core areas has also been included," he said.
Malakai Vakasiuola, SMEC-ITS. Nuku'alofa, June 2013.
Drain building on Taufa'ahau Road, Nuku'alofa. June 2013.
Drainage to Fanga'uta Lagoon
Malakai said the main part of the road works included fixing the three main roads at By-Pass Rd, Vaha'akolo Rd and Taufa'ahau Rd, which includes widening roads to about 10m, constructing new footpaths on both sides of the road and putting in drains to connect those roads to Fanga'uta Lagoon.
He said they had completed almost all the drains on Vaha'akolo and By-Pass Roads with work on the new drainage starting in front of the Asco Motors on Taufa'ahau Road.
"After this project is completed we will see a big difference. The drains will not relieve all the flooding but it would take it to a certain stage where the drainage would not let water sit there for weeks, as we have seen in the past. If we were to take out all flood water we would need a drainage system the size of this building, which would cost millions. But this new drainage system if cleaned and maintained can see water taken out within one to two hours."
He said the drains would also help take the excess water that is now flooding properties after the new roads were built. "For example, at the St Andrew's School we would have water sitting there for up to four weeks causing sanitation problems from mosquitoes but with the new drains we would able to relieve that water fast," he said.
Flooding at St Andrew's School entrance, By-Pass Rd, Nuku'alofa. February 2012.
Other road works completed, included building all access roads in the Popua and Sopu areas.
"Part of the work done now on Taufa'ahau Road from By-Pass Road to the Catholic Basilica Cathedral and carried out by the Chinese, includes putting some drainage in certain areas, widening of the road plus new footpaths. The work we are doing is restricted to how much we are able to spend but the Taufa'ahau Road works should all be done by July," he said.
Flooding
The project is also able to spend around US$1.4 million on the development of non-core areas, as decided by the Ministry of Infrastructure.
Malakai said the money is spent on improving secondary roads connecting to Vaha'akolo Rd and Taufa'ahau Rd. It also includes fixing the roads and putting drainage in areas affected by flooding due to heavy rain, including Holomui Road in Pahu, among other works in the urban area.
Littering blocks drains
The project had also purchased two trucks with the Ministry of Infrastructure. One is a street sweeper truck and the other a jet vacuum truck to clean drains.
"It is important that the Ministry gets these trucks out more often because the problem that we face is maintenance. The road needs to be swept on a daily basis to take out all the rubbish that could go into the drains with regular cleaning of the drains by the jet vacuum truck so to prevent the drainage getting blocked up," he said.
"We are thankful to ADB for the money provided to develop Nuku'alofa town that will see better roads, safer footpaths and improving drainages after looking at the flooding issue. Tonga is growing and when this project is completed it's a matter for us to maintain it and keep it clean so we can live in a nice clean environment, he said.
Sanitation problems
Tonga's rainy season runs from around November to April. The past season saw severe flooding as newly-built roads, such as Railway Road at Pahu, blocked the normal flow of water and trapped water in properties for long periods, drowning established gardens and causing sanitation problems in homes.