The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) encouraged the public on Wednesday, June 7, to repeat their preparations during the previous Super Typhoon “Betty” in anticipation of the possible effects of approaching Tropical Storm “Chedeng”.
Diego Agustin Mariano, head of Office of Civil Defense (OCD) joint information center (Courtesy of PTV-4 Laging Handa public briefing livestream)
Diego Agustin Mariano, head of OCD joint information center, said they already advised civil defense offices and disaster risk reduction and management (DRRM) councils to put in place all the necessary safety measures to ensure the preparedness of local government units (LGUs).
“Patuloy po ang ating preparations katulad ng nagdaang Betty. Tuluy-tuloy po ang ating preparations at pagmo-monitor (Our preparations continue just like what we did during the previous [super typhoon] Betty. Our preparations and monitoring are continuous),” Mariano said in a public briefing.
The OCD has yet to pinpoint the exact path that Chedeng might take but provinces in the eastern seaboard of the country were advised to brace for impact.
“Ito ngang bagyong Chedeng ay nasa may eastern seaboard ng ating bansa kaya more or less dito papasok o tatama itong bagyo (Storm Chedeng is located in the eastern seaboard of our country so more or less, it is where the storm will hit),” Mariano said.
Chedeng was last spotted at 1,190 km east of Southeastern Luzon as of 11 a.m., according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA).
It was moving northward at 10 km per hour (kph) while packing maximum sustained winds of 75 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 90 kph.
Chedeng will be the third storm to enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) this year, after Amang in April and Betty in May.
Last May 27, super typhoon Betty entered PAR and narrowly missed Northern Luzon, leaving minimal damage to the affected areas. The OCD acknowledged the early preparations done by the LGUs in minimizing the impact of the typhoon.
More than 5,000 individuals were preemptively evacuated by local governments in Cagayan Valley (Region 2); Central Luzon (Region 3); Mimaropa which covers Occidental Mindoro, Oriental Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, and Palawan (Region 4B); Western Visayas (Region 6); and Central Visayas (Region 7) as part of precautionary measures in areas susceptible to flooding and landslides.
Betty damaged 102 houses, and left P133,000 worth of damage to the agriculture sector and P68,695 infrastructure loss.
A total of P11.2 million worth of assistance were also provided by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), LGUs, and OCD to the affected communities.