National and provincial disaster officials are on high alert for what could be the most powerful typhoon to hit the country this year.

Warned that typhoon Pablo (international codename: Bopha) could intensify into a super storm, the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC) placed all its regional and municipal action centers on “blue alert” status as officials in the Bicol Region prepare to evacuate hundreds or thousands of its residents.

The Philippine Navy also placed all its naval assets and disaster response task units on standby alert.

Packing gusts of up to 220 kilometers-per-hour, Pablo was 900km southeast of Hinatuan City in Surigao del Sur yesterday, with maximum sustained winds of 185kph. It was forecast to move northwest at 22kph.

The typhoon which entered the Philippine area of responsibility at 6 p.m. on Sunday, is expected to make landfall on Tuesday or on Wednesday, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration or Pagasa.

Heavy rain from the storm was expected to lash the central Visayas region and the main southern island of Mindanao. Estimated rainfall within the 700km diameter of the typhoon is from 20 to 30 millimeter-per-hour (heavy to intense).

“This is a powerful storm, perhaps the strongest this year, and we enjoin everyone to take precautionary measures,” NDRRMC chief Benito Ramos said.

He said that local governments in areas likely to be soaked by heavy rains had been advised to undertake precautionary evacuations if needed.

This morning, the typhoon is expected to be 660km east of Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur province, 140km east northeast of Hinatuan by tomorrow morning and 60km north of Dumaguete City on Wednesday.

Evacuation
The Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council in Bicol led by Bernardo “Raffy” Alejandro ordered the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine National Police and Coast Guard to preposition vehicles needed for evacuation in highly susceptible communities.

Regional and provincial disaster officials led by Gov. Joey Salceda of Albay province are preparing to evacuate residents in areas that will be hit by the typhoon.

Pablo is seen to hit the southern portion of Bicol, which include the provinces of Albay, Sorsogon, Masbate and Camarines Sur.

Salceda ordered city and town officials to prioritize the evacuation of the elderly, children, pregnant and lactating mothers. He said that the number of people to be evacuated could reach 350,000.

“All vulnerable communities will be evacuated but children, senior citizens, disabled persons, pregnant women and lactating mothers should be evacuated first and their personal belongings,” Salceda said. He added that animals will also be brought to safety.

The governor said that they will also “evacuate” a giant Christmas tree.

Salceda said that they hope to restore the Christmas tree after the storm, saying that it is not an ordinary tree since it is a “hanging garden of 5,000 pili saplings wrapped by abaca, with Christmas lights and parols.”

Concerned agencies prepared
Meanwhile, President Benigno Aquino 3rd ordered all concerned departments and agencies as well as local government units to ensure that all necessary preparations are in place.

In an interview aired over state-run Radyo ng Bayan (dzRB), Palace spokesman Abigail Valte said that the President also directed the weather bureau to issue hourly updates.

Valte gave assurances that all concerned agencies such as the Departments of Social Welfare, Health and Education, the Armed Forces and the Philippine National Police are ready to mount rescue operations, distribute relief goods in evacuation centers and provide heavy equipment needed for road clearings.

The Philippines is battered by about 20 typhoons a year, some of them destructive. Pablo is the 16th so far this year.

In August, nearly 100 people were killed and more than a million were displaced by heavy flooding caused by a series of storms.

Nineteen typhoons struck the country last year, of which 10 were destructive, leading to more than 1,500 deaths and affecting nearly 10 percent of the total population, according to the government.

Other concerned agencies like the Departments of Health, Social Welfare and Development and Education, two Army divisions, to include the local police, the Philippine Coast Guard and the Bureau of Fire and Protection, are now on standby in preparation for Pablo.

WITH REPORTS FROM WILLIAM B. DEPASUPIL AND CATHERINE S. VALENTE