In anticipation of possible episodes of heavy rains this weekend due to the effects of Tropical Storm Gorio, the Quezon City (QC) government has placed its Disaster Action Team (DAT) on Yellow Alert status, or on “standby and ready to respond” to areas that would be affected by flash floods.
Retired police general Elmo San Diego, chief of the QC Department of Public Order and Safety and Vice Chairman of the QC Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, acknowledged that there will possibly be more rains, especially after Gorio has reportedly gained strength and will be expected to continue pulling winds and rain toward Metro Manila.
“Puwede tayong magkaroon ng problema kapag nagtuloy-tuloy ang ulan (We may have a problem if the rains continue). The disaster action team is on standby and on-call alert status ngayong weekend,” San Diego said during Friday’s emergency meeting of the Quezon City DRRM Council.
Quezon City’s DAT is composed of well-trained emergency responders, including paramedics that can perform search and rescue missions on urban, water, and wilderness terrain.
Quezon City’s Engineering Department, Parks Development and Administration Department (PDAD), and the Environment Protection and Waste Management Department (EPWMD), key departments in maintaining waterways and other structures, will be working double time to address situations of clogged drainages and uprooted trees.
“Ituloy niyo lang ang ginagawa niyo (Carry on with what you’re doing) and be on alert,” San Diego told his team.
Acting Mayor Ma. Josefina Belmonte-Alimurung, also known as Joy Belmonte, ordered the convening of the emergency meeting of the DRRM Council, which was presided over by San Diego.
San Diego reminded all department heads of the city government to keep their phone lines open during the weekend and report immediately when needed.
“Hindi na kayo dapat tawagin, pumunta immediately kasi kailangan. (Don’t wait to be called. Just come right away as needed),” San Diego said.
The Quezon City Emergency Operations Center can be reached by dialing numbers 122 or through landline phone numbers 922-3227 and 987-8887.