Cordillera braces for 'Maring', 'Lanie'
THE Office of the Civil Defense (OCD) in Cordillera Administrative Region advised the various disaster risk reduction and management councils in the region to make necessary preparations in responding to the possible effects of Tropical Depressions Maring and Lannie.
OCD-Cordillera regional director Andrew Alex Uy said tropical cyclone warning signal No. 1 have been declared for Benguet as of 11 a.m., Tuesday, September 12.
Core members of the Cordillera Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (CRDRRMC) convened for an emergency response preparedness meeting in preparation for the possible effects of the twin typhoons while the CRDRRMC operations center raised its alert status to blue effective 8:00 a.m.
Uy explained the utilization of all Early Warning Systems such as the use of public address systems, short messaging system, social media, radio stations, and text blast systems have been activated to help inform the people.
A SMART Infoboard is now in use to ensure the widest dissemination of timely weather and safety advisories for the public to refrain from doing outdoor activities such as caving, spelunking, surfing, mountaineering and other similar activities and avoid going to landslide and flood- prone areas.
Trekking, hiking and other related activities in Mt. Pulag and Mt. Purgatory in Benguet were suspended until further notice, while respective contingency plans for hydro hazards have been activated for possible implementation.
In Baguio City, Association of Barangay Council president and Councilor Micheal Lawana pointed out the activation of the barangay disaster risk reduction and management council and are now monitoring their respective barangays.
The Department of Public Works and Highways in the Cordillera have reported closure of the Tabuk-Banaue road particularly the Dumay section which was closed since July.
Department of Social Welfare and Development–Cordillera, through its SWAD Teams, is closely coordinating with the Provincial and Municipal Social Welfare and Development offices and the various DRRM’s in the region to monitor the situations on the ground. (Jonathan Llanes)