Palace urges public to prepare amid looming ‘supertyphoon’ entry

Malacañang on Monday asked the public to prepare as a weather system in the Pacific Ocean is seen to potentially develop into a “supertyphoon” while inside the Philippine area of responsibility.

This comes after the weather state bureau said that Typhoon “Mangkhut,” who is packing 140 kph maximum sustained winds and gusts of up to 170 kph, may enter PAR by Wednesday.

“Hindi po natin mapipigilan ang mga aberya gaya ng supertyphoon pero mababawasan po natin ang danyos na dinudulot ng mga ganitong aberya sa pamamagitan ng pagiging handa,” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a Palace press briefing.

(We cannot stop disasters like a supertyphoon but we can lessen the damage this disturbance can cause through being ready and prepared.)

Roque noted that the Social Welfare Department “is ready to provide humanitarian assistance” and that strategic plans are already in place.

Mangkhut, which will be named “Ompong” once inside PAR, will come in packing sustained winds of 215 kph but can develop into a supertyphoon within the next 12 to 24 hours, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said.

Its eye was last spotted at 2,440 km east of Southern Luzon while moving at a speed of 30 kph westward.

Ahead of Mangkhut’s entry to PAR, Roque said Cabinet members would discuss on Tuesday the state of readiness of all the agencies responding to calamities.  /je