In preparation for the effects of Typhoon Tino, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) deployed 525 personnel across Eastern Visayas, which is among the areas where the cyclone is forecast to make initial landfall, according to the state weather bureau.
The PCG said in a statement on Monday that it divided over 500 personnel into 73 disaster response teams in Northern Samar, Western Samar, Eastern Samar, Biliran, Leyte and Southern Leyte.
‘We will raise the alert status of all our coast guard operating units. In total, we have 770, including deployable response groups,’ PCG Spokesperson Capt. Noemie Cayabyab said in an interview with the dzRP.
Additionally, the PCG has put other assets on standby for faster emergency response.
‘Floating and land mobility assets such as high-speed response boats, rubber boats, aluminum boats, rescue trucks, service vehicles and a PCG ambulance are also on standby for quick response to any incident,’ the statement read.
The agency is also coordinating with local government units and disaster risk reduction management offices for monitoring, and dissemination of safety advisories, especially to coastal residents, Cayabyab noted.
With the typhoon affecting the country shortly after the observance of Undas, Cayabyab said that several passengers traveling home after the holiday break are stranded in ports.
As of 8 a.m., the coast guard recorded a total of 2,480 stranded passengers in 46 ports.
‘These are the passengers who are possibly returning home from observing Undas. They were stranded due to Typhoon Tino,’ Cayabyab said.
The ports with the most passengers stranded are the Pio Duran Port in Albay, and three ports in Sorsogon, namely Matnog Port, Pilar Port and Castilla Port.
Cayabyab said that as soon as Tropical Cyclone Wind Signals (TCWS) are issued, all sea travels are prohibited.
‘Definitely, if Signal No. 1 is raised in the area where the typhoon will originate, pass through and end, all our sea travel will be canceled,’ the spokesperson added.
Signal no. 3 has already been issued in parts of Eastern Visayas and Caraga, while the rest of Eastern Visayas are under Signal no. 2, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).
As of 11 a.m., the typhoon was packing maximum sustained winds of 120 kilometers per hour (kph), and gusts of up to 150 kph, Pagasa said.
It added that Typhoon Tino is expected to make landfall in the vicinity of Eastern Visayas on Monday evening to Tuesday morning.