There’s a weather disturbance reported to be a supertyphoon now inching closer toward the country. Typhoon Ompong, which already entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility, is expected to make a landfall in Luzon Saturday morning.
Packing maximum sustained winds of up to 205 km/h, gustiness of 255 km/h and a movement of at least 30 km/h, weather expert said Ompong is so far the strongest typhoon to hit the country this year.
For those in Cebu and the rest of the Visayas, Ompong will not directly hit the region. But that does not mean we do not have to worry about it because the typhoon is expected to trigger heavy rains.
How prepared are we for the coming typhoon? We hope everything is in place as we brace for flashfloods and landslides. Good thing Cebu Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office chief Baltazar Tribunalo has assured that relief goods and heavy equipment are now on standby.
It’s the time of the year when typhoons are an ordinary visitor to the country. Every year, millions worth of property and countless lives are lost as typhoons rip through the provinces, triggering flooding and landslides.
Yes, in every calamity, whether typhoon or earthquake, there are always casualties. That is because we lack the basic preparations and the necessary equipment for an immediate and swift response.
Since Yolanda, the most powerful typhoon ever to make landfall in recent memory, Filipinos still haven’t learned about the need to prioritize safety during disasters. There are those who do not feel the need to leave their homes despite repeated calls by authorities for them to evacuate to safer grounds.
Authorities have been conducting drills across the country to boost our preparations during calamities. But there’s always something wrong with the way we deal with disasters. We lack a concrete approach and a strict execution of measures aimed at lessening the impact.