Recently, the Philippines was hit by typhoon Ompong; considered the biggest storm in 2018 so far. At its peak, Ompong had maximum sustained winds reaching up to 205 kph near the center and a gustiness of up to 255 kph. The storm mostly affected the northern part of the Philippines, where tropical cyclone warning signal (TCWS) no. 4 was issued in several areas, such as Ilocos Norte, Apayao, Abra, Kalinga and Cagayan. Here in Region VIII, TCWS no. 1 was raised in Northern Samar.

While the storm affected the northern part of the Philippines, DSWD Region VIII prepared itself for the possible effects of the storm.

On September 13, DSWD activated its Quick Response Team. The QRT rendered 24/7 duty, taking turns in monitoring the progress of the storm.  The focal persons for disaster operations were alerted, including the SWADT leaders and the Project Development Officers who were stationed in the provinces to coordinate with the local MSWDOs and MDRRMOs. The Disaster Response Information Section coordinated closely with the SWADTs and the PDOs in gathering accurate reports from the field.  The Regional Resource Operations Section was also alerted to ensure the readiness of relief items, in case of requests for augmentation.

For more on DSWD’s  preparedness measures, see

https://www.facebook.com/dswdfieldoffice/posts/2145848759020404

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photos courtesy of Honey Lou Mora