Sorsogon town to temporarily use cubicles meant for COVID-19 response to house ‘Ambo’ evacuees

GUINOBATAN, Albay – Bulusan town in Sorsogon province will temporarily use the cubicles that it purchased for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) quarantine as evacuation rooms for some residents who will be displaced by Tropical Depression “Ambo.”

Marcky Ragasa, chief of the Bulusan Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, said that of the 100 cubicles that they purchased for COVID-19 response, 16 units were being utilized by residents who arrived home from Turbina in Calamba City, leaving them with 84.

He said that 34 would still be in Bulusan’s designated COVID-19 quarantine site, while the remaining 50 would be in the evacuation centers in San Roque and Dancalan villages.

“The senior citizens, lactating mothers, and persons with disabilities will be prioritized for the cubicles,” Ragasa told Inquirer.

He said that residents in coastal and landslide-prone areas will be evacuated on Thursday morning.

Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) weather specialist Loriedin De La Cruz, in their 5 p.m. Update on Tuesday, said that “Ambo” may pass by the Bicol region between 2 p.m. Thursday and Friday.

By then, “Ambo” will have intensified into a severe tropical storm, meaning its maximum sustained winds may reach 100 kilometers per hour.

As of this writing, Sorsogon province has not yet recorded a single case of COVID-19.

Ragasa said that this means logistics for the evacuation “may not be that difficult.”

“However, social distancing will still be implemented,” he said.