By Christopher Lloyd T. Caliwan
MANILA, April 4 (PNA) — Interior and Local Government Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II on Saturday urged local chief executives of towns and cities threatened by Typhoon “Chedeng” to execute preemptive evacuation plans to ensure the safety of local and foreign tourists, as well as people living in hazard-prone areas.
“Nananawagan po tayo sa ating mga mayor na maging LISTO para maiwasan natin ang sakuna sa pag-tama ng bagyo,” Roxas said, who also Vice Chairman for Preparedness of the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC) said.
The NDRRMC had already placed 15 areas under “red alert” status which calls for preemptive evacuation. These are Abra, Apayao, Aurora, Benguet, Cagayan, Ifugao, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Isabela, Kalinga, La Union, Mountain Province, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino, and Catanduanes.
Five provinces were placed under “orange alert” status which calls for preparation for preemptive evacuation, namely Nueva Ecija, Pangasinan, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, and Quezon. Placed under “yellow alert status” which calls for readiness are the provinces of Bulacan, Masbate, Pampanga, Tarlac and Zambales.
According to weather forecasters, rainfall is expected within the 150 kilometer radius from the center of the storm, which means that the typhoon is expected to dump moderate to heavy rain as it passes by.
Through its Operation LISTO, as early as Monday the DILG has alerted local officials in 24 provinces in Regions 1, 2, 3, 4A and 5 of the potential adverse impact of the typhoon. By Friday, the DILG had started sending advisories calling on local officials to execute preemptive evacuation plans. Around 20 LGUs in 5 provinces have began to implement preemptive evacuation plans upon the DILG alert.
DILG continues to monitor preparedness of 33 cities and 495 municipalities as the typhoon enters the Philippine territory.
Based on its preparedness monitoring activities, the DILG noted that most, if not all of the provinces placed under “red alert” had already completed Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) preparations such as executing preemptive and forced evacuation plans, organized administrative and logistical support teams, and conducted a check of inventory of relief goods and supplies.
Some LGUs placed under “orange alert” and “yellow alert” statuses, meanwhile have deployed their search, rescue and retrieval (SRR), security, medical and clearing operation teams.
The DILG chief said that “Chedeng” might still induce heavy rains that could trigger flash floods and landslides. The country’s weather bureau had also warned against possible storm surge that may affect coastal towns of Camarines Norte and Quezon along the stretch of Lamon Bay.
“Tiyakin natin ang kaligtasan ng ating mga kababayan. Kung kinakailangan, I encourage the mayors to seriously consider undertaking force evacuation for the safety of our constituents and visitors” Roxas said. (PNA)