Philippines, SEA Games brace for typhoon NDRRMC ready

MANILA, Philippines — The 30th Southeast Asian Games (SEAG) opens today with the shadow of Typhoon Kammuri looming larger as it gains strength moving slowly northwestward, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said.

“Kammuri is forecast to enter the Philippine area of responsibility between tonight and tomorrow morning and will be named Tisoy. Tisoy is the 20th Philippine tropical cyclone for 2019,” PAGASA weather specialist Chris Perez said at a press briefing yesterday.

PAGASA weather division chief Esperanza Cayanan previously said that it is up to the Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee (PHISGOC) to postpone or cancel any scheduled games in the next days depending on the typhoon’s intensity.

The typhoon is projected to cross over Central Luzon and Southern Tagalog areas in the coming days where several SEAG venues are located.

Disaster officials are bracing for the impact of the incoming powerful storm, with contingency measures to evacuate the athletes and delegates of the SEAG.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said Tuesday and Wednesday next week are considered “highly critical” as Typhoon Tisoy is expected to pass over the sporting venues located in Metro Manila and nearby provinces.

“If the need arises, we are prepared to move the athletes back to their hotels which will serve as their evacuation centers,” NDRRMC spokesman Mark Timbal said.

Expected to make landfall in Virac, Catanduanes on Monday, Tisoy will be 90 kms east of Daet, Camarines Norte on Tuesday and by Wednesday, it is expected to be 110 kilometers west southwest of Iba, Zambales.

As of 10 a.m. yesterday, the eye of Typhoon Kammuri was estimated to be at 1,470 kilometers east of Southern Luzon, still outside the Philippine area of responsibility, based on available data.

With maximum sustained winds of 140 kilometers per hour near the center and gustiness up to 170 kph, Kammuri is moving northwest slowly.

Perez said that so far, Kammuri still has no direct effect on the country, although the northeast monsoon is affecting Luzon.

Cordillera Administrative Region, Cagayan Valley and the provinces of Aurora and Quezon will have cloudy skies with scattered rains due to the northeast monsoon.

The PAGASA 4 p.m. bulletin also noted that “Palawan, the Visayas and Mindanao will experience partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rainshowers because of localized thunderstorms.”

Meanwhile, Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon will have partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rains also because of the northeast monsoon.

He added Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal No. 1 may be raised over the eastern portion of the Bicol region-Eastern Visayas area tomorrow. Maritime travel may be cancelled in these areas.

“Steady intensification is likely throughout the forecast period. The intensification of Kammuri into a super typhoon is less likely at this time but not ruled out,” PAGASA noted.

Typhoon Kammuri may bring moderate to heavy rains and thunderstorms starting Monday over the Bicol region and Samar provinces. Most of the areas in Central Luzon, Bicol, Southern Luzon and Metro Manila will experience strong winds and heavy rains on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Cayanan reiterated that based on available data, Kammuri is less likely to reach super typhoon category at this time, but they are not ruling out the possibility as the typhoon is forecast to steadily intensify before making landfall in Southern Luzon.

 NDRRMC agreed with PAGASA’s assessment and urged the public as well as attached agencies to keep watch.

“The public and the NDRRMC attached agencies concerned are advised to monitor the prevailing weather disturbances,” NDRRMC executive director Ricardo Jalad said.

Jalad added all regional offices of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) are now bracing for the possible impact of Tisoy.

He advised travelers in the affected regions, particularly in the Bicol region and Eastern Visayas area, and those along the path of Tisoy to closely monitor the storm advisories as maritime travel might be suspended in these areas.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) yesterday alerted its troops in Metro Manila and other areas expected to bear the brunt of Typhoon Kammuri to beef up their emergency response preparedness.

Aside from the National Capital Region, PNP spokesman Brig. Gen. Bernard Banac said police units in Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, Central Visayas, Calabarzon and Bicol regions have been directed to be alert for the typhoon’s onslaught.

“All our units have been advised to strengthen preparations at the regional, provincial and barangay levels,” he said at a press briefing in Camp Crame in Quezon City.

Banac said policemen should be ready for possible search and rescue operations as the typhoon is expected to bring heavy rains and strong winds.

Evacuation readied

In the eventuality that some of the hotels where local and foreign athletes are billeted are located in high-risk areas, the athletes will be transferred to other hotels, the second pre-designated evacuation areas.

Timbal said buses and other transport vehicles would be deployed at all venues during the entire SEAG.

“Everything has been planned, even before the SEAG,” Timbal said.

He said the NDRRMC could even recommend the possible suspension or transfer of venue should the need arise.

Timbal said the NDRRMC will be meeting with key people of the PHISGOC to further fine-tune preparations in dealing with various forms of emergencies.

PHISGOC has contingency plans for the entire games and the NDRRMC will be focusing efforts more on the venues in the direct path of Tisoy, he said.

As projected, Tisoy will be over Luzon, particularly areas in Pampanga, Tarlac, Subic, Zambales; Metro Manila, Cavite, Batangas and Laguna, where Games are scheduled to be held.

The NDRRMC said it is not seeing any possible weather complications today as Kammuri is still out of the country’s area of responsibility in the Pacific Ocean.

“We are not seeing any severe disturbances during the SEAG opening ceremonies,” Timbal said.

While they are hoping the storm impact in the country will not be extreme, Timbal said the NDRRMC and OCD, as well as attached agencies, are ready to perform their duties to ensure the safety of all athletes. 

“If something uneventful happens, we are hoping that it will not be that extreme. But we are ready in case there is a need to evacuate or move our athletic delegations,” Timbal said.

Thoughts and prayers

“Let us pray that we may be saved from disaster. Let us prepare and work for zero casualty. Let us care for the most vulnerable among us,” Bishop Joel Baylon of the Archdiocese of Legaspi said in a statement.

Baylon said the Filipino people should stand together and storm heaven with prayers for everyone who might be affected by the wrath of the typhoon when it enters the Philippines.

As part of the Church’s appeal for prayers, Baylon also urged the Filipino people to pronounce the “Oratio Imperata,” which will be prayed for deliverance from inclement weather and other natural calamities. - Jaime Laude, Manny Tupas, Robertzon Ramirez