Mayor: Bacolod City is fully prepared

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia yesterday declared the city is “fully prepared” for the arrival of Typhoon “Mangkhut,” locally named “Ompong.”

The mayor said he met with City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office officials on Wednesday to discuss preparations for the storm, where they informed him city ambulances and rescue vehicles are prepared for possible deployment.

Department of Education-Division of Bacolod representatives were also at the meeting, where they said schools are ready to serve as evacuation centers.

Based on a bulletin issued by the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) at 5:00 p.m. yesterday, “Ompong” was last located 575 kilometers east northeast of Virac, Catanduanes with maximum sustained winds of 205 kilometers per hour (kph) and gusts up to 255 kph.

The storm is currently moving west northwest at 25 kph and is expected make landfall along the northeast section of Luzon between this evening and Saturday.

As of press time, several areas of Luzon are under a typhoon warning signal./DGB, WDJ