THE National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) has prepositioned and also put on standby some P1.7 billion worth of food packs and other relief assistance in preparation for Typhoon Ompong (international code name Mangkhut), which is expected to enter the country’s area of responsibility today.
Ompong, which the government said has the possibility of developing into a super typhoon, directly threatens extreme Northern Luzon, which is still reeling from the effects of the previous typhoon and the southwest monsoon.
NDRRMC Spokesman Edgar L. Posadas said the standby aid would complement the prepositioned food packs for residents in the provinces of Cagayan, Abra, Isabela, Batanes, Kalinga and Apayao, and the Ilocos provinces.
“The DSWD has ensured the availability of P1.7 billion worth of standby funds and stockpiles, and the prepositioning of food and nonfood items for possible response and relief efforts,” he said.
The standby assistance would be stocked either in Cauayan City, Isabela, Santa Ana, Cagayan or at Clark in Pampanga. Posadas said the NDRRMC, which is already on red alert, has intensified preparations for a disturbance on the level of Supertyphoon Yolanda, which hit the Visayas in 2013.
Still, he said, the government will determine on Wednesday whether to implement—through local officials in threatened areas—any forced evacuation, which will coincide with the entry of Ompong into the country.
In Cagayan Valley officials have already declared a “no sail and no fishing zone” as of Monday.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines Northern Luzon Command (Nolcom) has alerted all of its units to be prepared for search and rescue operations for the typhoon.
Nolcom commander Lt. Gen. Emmanuel B. Salamat said all ground forces were already deployed for humanitarian assistance and disaster-response operations.
Air and sea assets from the Air Force and the Navy were also readied for the operations if it is needed.
“Nolcom is working hand in hand with the RDRRMC [Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Councils], OCD [Office of Civil Defense] and other stakeholders in preparing measures and contingency plans for the imminent threats of Typhoon Mangkhut,” Salamat said.
“Nolcom is ready and on standby to extend assistance like disaster response and relief work,” he added.
DPWH prepares
Meanwhile, all Regional and District Engineering Offices of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) are preparing measures to mitigate possible damage to infrastructure from Ompong.
DPWH Secretary Mark A. Villar issued on Tuesday a memorandum directing the mobilization of DPWH regional and district disaster-response teams nationwide for preparatory activities to ensure structural integrity of vital roads, bridges and high-rise public buildings.
In coordination with Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration, OCD Philippine Army, Philippine National Police, local government units and DPWH disaster-response teams with heavy equipment and necessary logistical needs are now deployed along strategic locations to monitor and submit timely situational reports of national roads and bridges every six hours and provide prompt assistance during the onset of typhoon.
All available equipment with operators are prepositioned along vital road sections and close to landslide-prone areas to conduct prompt clearing operations and immediate restoration of collapsed bridges and cut roads and ensure mobility of disaster-response activities.
After the storm hits, these teams are likewise responsible for the initial assessment of damage, as well as the submission of detailed information on damaged structures with cost estimates for the restoration of calamity-hit structures.