The Department of Transportation (DOTr) suspended on Friday, April 16, all land and sea travels bound for Visayas and Mindanao due to the threat posed by Typhoon “Bising” (international name “Surigae”).
In an advisory, the DOTr ordered for the suspension of trips by land and sea vessels, including fishing vessels coming from Matnog Port in Sorsogon province and other ports in the Bicol Region starting Friday noon.
The move was made upon the request of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) in Region V, and subsequently approved by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council-Emergency Operations Center (NDRRMC-EOC).
“The DOTr advises trucking or logistics companies and buses not to proceed or postpone their planned trips in order to avoid long queues at Matnog, Sorsogon, to Daraga, Albay,” it said.
The DOTr also directed its attached agencies in the maritime and road sectors such as the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), the Land Transportation Office, (LTO), and the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to immediately enforce the travel suspension.
In a separate advisory, the PCG said shipping operations will be suspended Friday, April 16 until Tuesday, April 20, as precautionary measure due to possible flash floods in low-lying communities and/or landslides in mountainous areas during severe thunderstorms.
“Shipping operations at Matnog port in Sorsogon going to Visayas and Mindanao are temporarily suspended from 12 p.m. today, 16 April 2021 until 20 April 2021 (Tuesday) due to Tropical Storm, Bising,” the PCG advisory read.
According to the latest advisory from the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), Bising entered the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR) at 6:20 a.m., Friday and intensified into a typhoon.
Bising is forecasted to affect Eastern Visayas and the Bicol Region. It is expected to bring rough to very rough seas over the eastern seaboards of Visayas and Mindanao. (with reports from Richa Noriega)