Manila, Sept. 1 -- The collapse of bridges and damage to flood-control structures during a month of successive typhoons and monsoon rains should be investigated to determine whether public infrastructure can withstand increasingly severe weather disturbances, Senate President Pro Tempore Vicente Sotto III said Tuesday.

Sotto filed Proposed Senate Resolution 631 seeking a Senate inquiry into the root causes and devastating effects of the calamities that battered the country throughout August, including an estimated PHP5.1 billion in damage to public and private infrastructure.

The resolution specifically raised questions over flood-control projects designed to protect communities but were themselves damaged during the onslaught of heavy...