Isabela, Aurora residents to be evacuated Saturday in preparation for ‘Chedeng’

Residents in flood- and landslide-prone areas in Isabela and Aurora provinces will be evacuated on Saturday as Typhoon Chedeng (Maysak) threatens to hit land near these areas early Sunday.

At a National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) meeting on Friday, Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Usec. Austere Panadero said all concerned local governments have already been alerted about the possible effects of the approaching weather
disturbance.

"Starting tomorrow, we will implement preemptive or forced evacuation as necessary, depending on the alerts that will be issued to us by PAGASA especially in the areas along Isabela and Aurora,” Panadero said during the briefing.

He added that local government officials are already equipped with geohazard maps, so they can determine which residents to bring to evacuation centers.

"One hundred percent of the provinces that have been identified as going to be affected by Chedeng have been alerted. They are preparing and prepositioning all their equipment,” Panadero said.

The DILG official also appealed to residents in these areas to cooperate with the evacuation.

"Ang panawagan po namin, patuloy na makinig sa abiso ng ating PAGASA at sundin ang abiso, babala at aksyon na ipapatupad ng ating local governments,” he said.

Earlier in the day, PAGASA hoisted Storm Signal No. 1 over Catanduanes and Camarines Sur as Chedeng continues to move toward Northern-Central Luzon. The typhoon packs maximum winds of 150 kph and gustiness of 185 kph.

Chedeng is projected landfall over the coast of Aurora-Isabela area by Sunday morning and may will exit the land mass via Ilocos Sur by Sunday evening. --Andreo Calonzo/KBK, GMA News