UMALMA si Alcala, Cagayan mayor Tin Antonio sa diumano’y late na abiso ng Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) patungkol sa galaw ng Super Typhoon Ofel.
Sa kanyang Facebook post ay hindi napigilan ng alkalde na maglabas ng hinaing sa PAGASA dahil hindi sila naalerto na papunta sa kanilang lugar ang bagyo.
“What the hell PAGASA[?] a [super typhoon] changed track and landed in Baggao AND YOU DID NOT TELL US?!! DIRECT HIT KAMI! KARGO ‘NYO!” saad ni Mayor Tin.
Agad namang nag-viral ang kanyang post sa social media at umani ng samu’t saring reaksyon mula sa mga netizens.
“No one can predict the path mayora, tignan mo mga agency ng japan,us,korea at pagasa e magkakaiba. Predictive model ang ginagawa kaya maraming scenario ang linalabas nila. Anytime pwede magbago ang direction ng bagyo kaya much better ang pre emptive evacuation rather than reacting on the fly, na minsan e huli na,” saad ng isang netizen.
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Nireplyan naman ito ni Mayor Tin.
“landfall was 1:30PM. They posted 2:07PM. They did not even tell us. They had information beforehand, pero sinadya nilang hindi sabihin,” sagot ng alkalde.
Comment naman ng isa, “Atty. [Tin]. It’s a weather forecast po. We see how the people in PAG-ASA are doing their job, in as much as we see how well you are doing your job. All we can do is pray and prepare…May schedule po ang release ng update. AND,EVEN WITHOUT FURTHER UPDATE, YOUR MUNICIPALITY IS WITHIN THE CONE OF UNCERTAINTY.”
“Pointing fingers is what we do when we want to shift blame or responsibility to others,” sey naman ng isa.
Samantala, nanindigan naman si Mayor Tin sa kanyang naunang pahayag.
“The issue with PAGASA is untimely information.
“Typhoon paths are unpredictable, we all understand that completely. But to learn of the change in track that places our town on a much closer, dangerous path minutes before a trumpeted supertyphoon is upon us is unacceptable. We learned about it after the fact of landfall,” lahad ni Mayor Tin.
Nag-landfall raw sa Baggao ang Super Typhoon Ofel noong 1:30 PM pero naglabas ng announcent ang PAGASA noong 2:07PM.
“As late as 11:00AM landfall forecast was at Sta. Ana area. Why were we not given the information earlier? Surely, between 11:00AM and 1:30PM landfall, PAGASA must have seen there was a change. Why the delay in releasing that vital information? And why did it take longer to inform after landfall?” tanong pa ni Mayor Tin.
Aniya, may mga nagsasabi na hindi naman mahalaga kung saan nag-land ang bagyo dahil parte sila ng cone of uncertainty pero giit niya na importante ito.
“Knowing your proximity to what you perceive as most dangerous matters. Any one of you, ask yourself and answer honestly: WOULD YOU RATHER KNOW THAT YOU WILL BE IN THE EYE OF A SUPERTYPHOON OR NOT? If your answer is it does not matter, you are lying to yourself,” sabi pa ni Mayor Tin.
Taliwas rin sa mga akusasyong ibinabato sa kanya, well-prepared sila sa pagdating ng bagyo sa Alcala.
“We have implemented preemptive and forced evacuation to the utmost; our mitigation measures are in place. By the grace of God and the tireless efforts of our rescuers to respond and disseminate information we have not lost a single soul in the five typhoons we have experienced in one month.
“But any responder knows that preparing for a typhoon is not just a physical undertaking. It is motivating people, quieting fears, keeping up morale. It is easing a whole population into a mindset that we will survive. And the tool responders use to get people into that state is TIMELY INFORMATION,” sey ni Mayor Alcala.
Chika pa niya, kung ano man ang paparating na panganib o kung gaano man ito kalala, basta’t may prior knowledge sila sa mangyayari ay alam niyang makaka-survive sila nang maayos.
“And so I stand my ground. PAGASA should reflect on the role it plays in this typhoon-ravaged country. If it truly wants to be of service, it should not wash hands and hide behind the unpredictabiliy of typhoons. It should plant itself squarely on the psyche of people who rely on their pronouncements and who stand to lose everything,” giit pa ni Mayor Tin.