President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. said on Friday, Oct. 14, that the government is ready to respond to the impacts of tropical depression Neneng, which is expected to affect about 10,000 people.
"In terms of relief goods, in terms of material, in terms of assets, we have put them as close as possible to the – yung doon sa track na forecast ng ating PAGASA (Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration), so that makapasok sila kaagad (track of the typhoon as forecasted by PAGASA so that they can promptly respond) when the time comes," Marcos said in a media interview.
"The estimate now is that 10,000 people will be affected by this Neneng. So that is what we are -- those are the kind of numbers that we are preparing for," he added.
The President further said he is closely monitoring the situation, citing that the tropical depression might intensify in just a short period of time like what happened with typhoon Karding in September.
"But once again, I think the key to all of these is to watch it very closely because may bagong feature ang mga bagyo ngayon (typhoons have new feature),"
"Kung naalala ninyo yung Karding (If you can recall it, Karding) was a Typhoon Signal No. 1. Within ilang oras lang naging 5 na, 4, 5. Mabilis mag-develop kaya kailangan nakabantay tayo nang husto (Within a few hours, it became signal no. 4, 5. It develops fast so we need to monitor it closely). So that’s what we are doing," he added.
Meanwhile, tropical depression Maymay, which hit provinces in Luzon this week, has caused flooding across Cagayan Valley.
The President said they will also look into this as it can also happen during the onslaught of "Neneng."
"We will have to also look at that and see kung ano pa yung mga kailangan gawin (and see what needs to be done)," he said.
According to the weather state bureau, tropical depression Neneng slightly weakened as of Friday morning but is expected to intensify during the weekend.