Palace urges Metro Manila, nearby areas to prepare for ‘Ruby’

Owners of motorized fishing boats park their vessels temporarily along the Freedom Island in Paranaque City to avoid the winds of Tropical Storm “Ruby” which is expected to pass south of Metro Manila Monday evening (Dec. 8, 2014). (PNA photo by Avito C. Dalan)

MANILA — Malacanang is advising residents of Metro Manila and nearby provinces to brace themselves for tropical storm “Ruby” which is expected to hit the metropolis starting Monday night.

In a press briefing, Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte said they should not be complacent even as “Ruby has weakened from a typhoon into a tropical storm.

Valte said the suspension of government work and classes in the National Capital Region and nearby areas aims to give time for residents and the community to prepare for storm impact.

“So, dapat po patuloy lang po tayong makinig sa radyo, sa ating mga TV, sa social media at ihanda po natin ‘yung mga family emergency kits po natin para maiwasan naman po natin ‘yung aberya (So, we should regularly watch the TV and monitor social media for updates, as well as prepare our family emergency kits so we can avoid problems),” she said.

Valte said the country must learn lessons from previous typhoons.

“Siguro po kahit hindi po tayo nakaranas nung hagupit nung bagyong ‘Yolanda’ noon, marami ho tayong ibang bagyong pinagdaanan at sana’y maalala po natin ‘yung mga leksyon natin dito at magawa po natin ng naaayon ‘yung ating preparasyon (Even though we didn’t experience the wrath of ‘Yolanda’ before, we still experienced a lot of typhoons and hopefully we’ll remember what we’ve learned from those typhoons and we will do necessary preparations),” she added.

For Metro Manila, Valte said concerned government agencies National Disaster Risk Reduction & Management Council, Armed Forces of the Philippines, Department of National Defense, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) have already prepared for the projected impact of storm Ruby.

“Ang first order po ng DPWH ay siguraduhin ang clearing ng mga main roads doon sa mga lugar na dinaanan po ng bagyo para sigurado po tayong makapasok agad ‘yung ating mga ground team (The first order of business is to clear the main roads in typhoon-hit areas to ensure entry of our ground team),” she said.