Woman in viral Makati sewer incident denies living there, explains why she went inside drainage
The viral woman who was spotted coming out of a sewer in Makati during broad daylight amid the city traffic denied claims that she had been living there.
According to a TV Patrol report, the woman—identified as Rose—said she has a residence. She only went inside the drainage, located at the corner of V.A. Rufino and Adelantado Streets, after supposedly dropping her "cutter blade" there.
"Nahulugan po kasi ako ng cutter blade," Rose said. "Pinipilit ko po siyang kunin. Tumingin ako sa bawat paligid ko at kung meron bang mga sasakyan o mga tao po ba. Bumaba po ako doon."
"Pinilit ko ang sarili kong ipasok ang sarili ko doon para makuha ko 'yung cutter blade," she added.
She said she was surprised that passersby were looking at her as she was emerging from the hole.
"Sobrang takot ko, napatakbo ako," she said. "Dali-dali ako umuwi sa bahay at nagsarado ako ng bahay at pinilit kong ikulong ang sarili ko."
Nevertheless, Rose bared that she's still struggling financially. She noted that workers from the Department of Social Welfare and Development had previously talked to her during a past profiling activity. She, however, refused their help, as she thought she was going to get arrested.
Last May 29, the DSWD shared photos of its staff talking to the then-unidentified Rose, who can be seen crying.
DSWD Sec. Rex Gatchalian said they're giving Rose P80,000 as cash assistance to start a sari-sari store business.
Gatchalian added they're also looking for Rose's companions, who are allegedly living in the sewers, to give them cash as well. "Hindi natin sila ibabalik sa kanilang komunidad nang walang kaagapay na tulong." The DSWD is working with the Makati police to look for them.
Viral sewer incident
In a viral May 26 Reddit post titled Mole People?, photographer William Roberts shared pictures of Rose emerging from the hole.
Makati City Police Station Chief Jean Dela Torre claimed in a May 28 press conference that the woman is a mendicant and has turned the drainage into a home. Authorities discovered several things in it, including pliers, small objects, and shirts.
According to Makati police, three individuals have been using the drainage system in the city as a temporary shelter aside from Rose. They cited a closed-circuit television footage on May 26 at 4 p.m. showing that in under a minute, three people were able to enter a hole in a canal at the same hole where the viral woman had been spotted. They found tools like a screwdriver, pliers, a wrench, and other metal objects inside, and have been considering the possibility of ongoing illegal activities.
Additional investigation revealed that the drainage is connected to a nearby creek and might also be linked to another system along Amorsolo Street. That, the police said, could be an alternate route for these individuals.
In a later post, William recalled seeing the woman again, whom he said was called "BB." According to him, BB (or Rose, according to authorities) was resting underneath when the sound of traffic woke her. She went out of the hole as she reportedly didn't want to miss their group's scheduled 5 p.m. meal, which consisted of "whatever scraps they'd managed to gather for the day."
In his post, William also recalled that BB was among a group of individuals who had established a community in an underground network.
