Photo courtesy of Office of Civil Defense.
QUEZON CITY — The government has assured the public that all systems are in place as Luzon braces for Severe Tropical Storm Nika, which is expected to make landfall in Isabela or Northern Aurora this morning.
In a press briefing, Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary (DILG) Jonvic Remulla, vice chair of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, announced that they had advised the 2,500 barangays in Nika’s direct path to conduct preemptive evacuations, with all concerned government units on standby.
“We have advised all the governors involved in the 2,500 barangays to be evacuated, especially those prone to floods and landslides,” Remulla said. “The DSWD has prepositioned the necessary food packs and response facilities. The five airports servicing the region have been notified to clear the vicinities immediately.”
The DILG chief noted that warnings have been issued since Friday last week. He emphasized that the response scenario is a 10-day event, spanning from Friday to the following Monday, due to the impending arrival of two other tropical cyclones, to be named Ofel and Pepito.
“Nevertheless, we are prepared. Information is key,” Remulla stated. “The DENR has identified the barangays most prone to landslides and floods, and the response should be immediate.
“You can see the scenario: between Nov. 11 and 17, we will have three typhoons entering the Philippines, all on the same path,” he explained. “So, between Marce and Pepito, that means four typhoons in 10 days, following the same trajectory.”
Remulla warned that the likelihood of landslides is very high and imminent in the mountains of Regions 1, 2, and the Cordillera Administrative Region due to ground saturation from successive typhoons impacting these areas. (OCD)
