BACOLOD CITY – City Hall has declared a “blue alert” status here as Typhoon Kammuri moves closer to Philippine territory.
Executive assistant to the mayor Joemarie Vargas told DNX this means the local bureaucracy is on monitoring and preparation mode, particularly keeping track of the storm, preparing evacuation centers and other pre-disaster measures that can be done before the storm hits.
Vargas said Bacolod can expect strong winds if Kammuri, which will be known as Tisoy if it enters the PAR, hits the country.
The typhoon, as of yesterday morning, was tracked by local weather bureau PAGASA, as moving northwestward with center winds of 140 kilometers per hour and gusty winds of up 170 kph.
The trade winds or the amihan might push the typhoon down to the Visayas although it remains just a possibility, Vargas, a seasoned storm observer, told DNX.
Vargas advised residents to watch out for flying tree branches and other debris that could be whipped into the air by the storm winds.
He added disaster personnel had already gone around the city with Ceneco crews to trim overhanging tree branches that can be torn loose and cut off power wires.
