Preemptive evacuation starts Typhoon ‘Betty’ slightly weakens

n By MARICEL CRUZ AND JOEL ZURBANO

OVER 800 families have been preemptively evacuated in northern and central Luzon and parts of Visayas as super typhoon Betty (international name: Mawar) moves westward toward northern Philippines and is expected to dump heavy rains on Monday.

Aside from the areas in Northern Luzon, residents in Negros Occidental, Palawan and Pampanga have also started preemptive evacuation, according to Diego Mariano, Information Officer of the Office of Civil Defense-National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (OCD-NDRRMC).

Some 670 families were evacuated in Negros Occidental, 193 in Palawan, two in Pampanga, and 28 in Iloilo.

In Cagayan province, disaster office head Ruelie Rapsing said they are implementing an “adopt-a-neighbor” scheme where churches and residents with sturdy houses are asked to provide shelter to their neighbors with houses made of weaker materials.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development has earmarked around P2.1 billion in disaster risk funds on top of prepositioned family food packs and non-food aid.

The government has identified Regions 1, 3, 4B or MIMAROPA, 6, 7, 8 and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) as the most “susceptible” to massive floods and landslides.

“In these areas, we expect at least 1.5 million residents or about 8,000 susceptible families,” said DSWD spokesman

10,000 OFWs who lost jobs in Saudi to get backpay in full

THE Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said Saudi Arabia has finally earmarked funds to pay thousands of overseas Filipino workers with still unpaid wages.

At least 10,000 OFWs who had worked for several Saudi companies that declared bankruptcy following the economic crisis in 2015 would receive “full payment,” DMW Undersecretary Bernard Olalia said in a media briefing.

In the same briefing, DMW Secretary Susan Ople said Saudi Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Ahmed bin Sulaiman Al-Rajhi

“gave us the good news that the funds to pay for the unpaid claims are now with the Ministry of Finance” of the Saudi government, Ople said that while she did not inquire about the amount allocated for the unpaid salaries, “what is clear is it’s there and it is sufficient to pay not just the claims of the unpaid [Filipino] workers but all the other claims, including those of their own people.”

According to Ople, the Saudi government requested “a bit more time” for the processing of claims, adding that “they said that next month, they may be able to give us more details.”

Palace: Oil spill cleanup done in 1 month

THE last phase of the oil spill cleanup in Oriental Mindoro will be completed within a month, Malacañang announced on Saturday.

Communication Secretary Cheloy Garafil made the assurance after the arrival of a dynamic support vessel (DSV), which will be used to siphon the remnants of the 800,000 liters of industrial fuel oil from the sunken MT Princess Empress at the Riviera Pier in Subic Bay Freeport Zone on Friday. The DSV Fire Opal, Garafil said, would finish the last phase of the cleanup, and the operations may take 20 to 30 days.

The vessel will sail from Subic on the night of May 28 and is expected to arrive in Batangas the following day.

It will then proceed to the designated mission area, she added. Citing the report from Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Commandant Admiral Artemio Abu, Garafil said the extraction would be done in 20 to 30 days.

The operations will last a month, if weather conditions are “favorable,” she said, based on a separate report submitted by Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Administrator Ariel Nepomuceno. Maricel V. Cruz

Romel Lopez.

Local government units have also been asked to ensure their respective Emergency Operations Centers are operational and functioning for emergency response in areas affected by the typhoon.

DILG secretary Banjamin Abalos Jr. ordered the designation of possible evacuation centers as he reminded LGUs of coastal areas to implement a ban on fishing and sailing if necessary.

According to PAGASA, the super typhoon may enhance the southwest monsoon or habagat, resulting in “strong breeze to near-gale conditions” starting this evening (Sunday) to early Monday morning.

PAGASA said the super typhoon is expected to be “almost stationary” between late Tuesday and early Wednesday.

The super typhoon is now packing maximum sustained winds of 185 kilometers per hour (kph) near the center (from 195 kph in the 11 a.m. bulletin), and gusts of up to 230 kph (from 240 kph).