Gov’t readies food supply in preparation for typhoon Julian’s wrath


The national government prepositioned food and other essential supplies for individuals who will be affected by typhoon “Julian”.

In a situational report on Sunday, Sept. 29, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said a total of 1.9 million family food packs worth P1.48 billion, other food items worth P276 million, and non-food items (NFIs) worth P919 million were already prepared by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

Some P171 million in standby fund is also available for utilization by the DSWD, including P123 million which can be allotted as Quick Response Fund (QRF) in the central office of the DSWD.

In Batanes, the provincial disaster risk reduction and management office (PDRRMO) instructed the residents to tie their roof and put shutters on their windows as Julian is expected to make landfall in the province.

“Patuloy po ang pagbibigay natin ng information sa mga kababayan na magtali ng bubong, maglagay ng tapangko o window shutters at maghanda-handa dahil inaasahan talagang baka maglalandfall sa amin (We inform our people to tie their roof, put window shutters and prepare because we expect that it will make a landfall here),” Batanes PDRRMO head Roldan Esdicul said in a radio interview over dzBB.

Esdicul said the province has enough food supply and fuel for would-be evacuees. 

The provincial government of Batanes has not yet ordered a preemptive evacuation since only light to moderate rains were being experienced so far.

“Nakahanda na ang evacuation centers pero wala pa rin preemptive evacuation kasi medyo tolerable pa naman. ‘Yun nga lang medyo may ilang turista na nastranded (The evacuation centers are prepared but there’s no preemptive evacuation yet because the situation is still tolerable. But some tourists got stranded,” Esdicul said.

In Cagayan, residents were reminded to take precaution against primary hazards such as rain-induced landslides.

The Cagayan PDRRMO has deployed personnel to quick response stations so they can quickly respond to emergencies, according to Cagayan PDRRMO head Ruelie Rapsing.

The provincial government of Cagayan has also not implemented a preemptive evacuation. But moderate to heavy rainfall was already being experienced in the northeastern part of Cagayan, which covers the towns of Santa Ana, Gonzaga, Buguey, Gattaran, and Santa Teresita.

“So far, walang naireport na inilikas itong mga northeastern portion po natin. Hindi naman kasi flood-prone municipalities ito, hindi low-lying areas. Ito’y nasa shoreline. Ang mga hazards nito ay more or less rain-induced landslides (So far, there is no report on evacuees in the northeastern portion. These are not flood-prone municipalities nor low-lying areas. These are located in the shoreline. The hazards are more or less rain-induced landslides),” Rapsing said.