Globe to provide areas expected to be hit by “Ruby” with gen sets for phone-charging

Globe Telecommunications Building (Wikipedia)

MANILA — Telco giant Globe Telecommunications Inc. (Globe) on Friday said it will be providing areas expected to be affected by typhoon “Ruby” with portable generator sets in case of power interruption.

Globe said in a statement that these gen sets will be on standby to be used for Libreng (free) Charging activities to ensure that people get to keep in touch with their friends and loved ones even without electricity.

The company will also be providing critical municipalities with mobile phones and prepaid load which they can use to offer Libreng Tawag service to affected residents for at least a week.

Initial areas identified for Libreng Tawag include Sara and Concepcion, Iloilo; San Jose and Culasi, Antique; Roxas City and Pontevedra, Capiz; Kalibo and New Washington, Aklan; Cadiz and Sagay, Negros Occidental; Sibulan and Tanjay, Negros Oriental; Ormoc, Tacloban, and Maasin, Leyte; Borongan and Guiuan, Eastern Samar; and Bantayan, Bogo, and Danao, Cebu.

The Libreng Tawag centers will be ready to serve customers in areas most likely to be hit by “Ruby” within the critical 72 hours after landfall and will start operating even if mobile signal is not affected.

Globe said that should there be a service disruption, the centers will operate as soon as communication lines are restored.

In addition, the telco is doing the necessary coordination with various internal groups and local government units in the path of “Ruby” for possible relief operations.

Globe Corporate Social Responsibility Director Fernando Esguerra said these measures have been put in place so that the company will be ready for any eventuality.

“We are empowering the local government units concerned to conduct Libreng Tawag service if the need arises,” Esguerra said in a statement.

“We are equipping them with emergency communication facilities so that they can do this while our security personnel are focused on ensuring that Globe employees and our systems are safe and intact,” he added.