President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. directed all government agencies to prepare for the worst-case scenario as Super Typhoon ‘Pepito’ approaches, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) reported on Saturday.
OCD said President Marcos and Defense Secretary Gilberto C. Teodoro Jr. want agencies to do the utmost preparations not only to areas to be directly hit by Pepito but also to other potentially affected regions.
While government personnel in Eastern Visayas and Bicol have been alerted, Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Administrator Ariel Nepomuceno said state workers have also been mobilized in Calabarzon, the National Capital Region (NCR), Central Luzon, Cagayan area, Ilocos, and Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR).
Nepomuceno underscored the importance of carrying out the necessary preparations as the typhoon approaches.
“Ang pag-uutos ni Presidente Bongbong Marcos at ni Secretary Gilbert Teodoro, dapat gawin natin iyong worst case scenario planning. Mas maganda na iyong sobra ang paghahanda kaysa magkulang,” Nepomuceno said in a news forum in Quezon City.
“Kayat dito sa bagyo na ito, pampito na ho ito eh simulan natin sa Julian, Kristine, Leon, Marce, Nika, Ofel. Pampito itong si Pepito. Kayat iyong paghahanda natin, hindi ngayon ho sinisimulan iyan. Kailangan maunawaan ng ating mga kababayan na ito ay nakadugtong doon sa anim na mga naunang bagyo,” he said.
Residents staying in evacuation centers due to previous typhoons were advised not to return to their homes to ensure their safety, Nepomuceno said. He thanked local government units for their cooperation.
There are 11,448 families or 35,335 individuals staying in temporary shelters. The number of evacuees increased when the government implemented preemptive evacuation, Nepomuceno said.
In a separate briefing, Nepomuceno said the government has so far carried out strategic deployment of assets and personnel ahead of Pepito, prepositioning air, land, and sea assets.
This is in coordination with various agencies including the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Philippine National Police (PNP), Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and local government units, he added. (PND)
