By LITO RULONA,Correspondent
Officials of the Provincial and City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council over the weekend has raised alert status to all barangay units in monitoring a low pressure area (LPA) that is expected to be the first tropical depression to enter the country in 2016.
CDRRMC weather monitoring specialist Virgil Lago said that they are closely monitoring the entry of an LPA within Northern Mindanao area that would likely become a tropical depression name “Ambo”.
“We are just hoping nga dili mahimo nga tropical depression og dili mag-landfall. We are not taking any chances nga mag-prepare gyud ta sa unsa man nga panghitabo aron maka-andam ta,” he said.
He said CDRRMC is now pro-active and take all risk to prepare everything including pre-emptive evacuation in all low-lying areas whenever strong and heavy rains would hit the area.
“Under new law RA 10121 known as the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM) Act of 2010 is a reactive type of response nga duna nay preparedness, prevention and mitigation. Dili nato mapug-ngan ang baha ug ang disaster pero mapugngan nato ang epekto,” he added.
Lago said CDRRMC would not be complacent but to prepare for the worst anytime that an impending disaster would come.
“Wala ta’y kumpyansa bisan unsa pa kahinay,” he pointed out.
Color coding during that was agreed before was already modified that when CDRRMC raised the color yellow alert, it would mean for a pre-emptive evacuation must take place on considered disaster prone areas.
Alarm system posts were installed at the City Hall roof deck, barangay Consolacion, barangay Bonbon, barangay Iponan, barangay Pagatpat and barangay Balulang.
In Misamis Oriental, PDRRMC chief Jun Dy said they had already instructed MDRRMC in every municipality to keep radio communications open and possible to throw report to Provincial Capitol whenever they experience heavy rain in their respective areas.
Dy said they also initially deployed heavy equipment to strategic areas that always suffers pocket landslides during heavy rains in the areas of Manticao, Alubijid, Jasaan, and Gingoog City.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) is monitoring a low pressure area (LPA) that is expected to east of Mindanao area.
According to Pagasa, the LPA is embedded along the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) which will bring light to moderate rains and thunderstorms over the Visayas, Mindanao, and Mimaropa over the weekend.
