The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) began preparing its ports and other facilities nationwide for the rainy season enhanced by the southwest monsoon or ‘habagat.’ In a statement on Tuesday, PPA General Manager Jay Daniel Santiago said he has ordered the PPA’s 25 Port Management Offices (PMO) to ensure that all facilities are ready to serve passengers, especially those that may be affected by trip cancellations due to bad weather. ‘Since passengers’ welfare remains to be our utmost priority, I instructed all the PMOs to make sure that we are able to immediately cater to the needs and concerns of the passengers,’ Santiago said. PMOs, he said, should ensure they have functional generator sets for power outages and to conduct regular inspections for the proper maintenance of all its equipment. ‘Charging stations and water refilling stations are also available for all the passengers free of charge,’ he said. During bad weather, Santiago said the PPA works with the Philippine Coast Guard and local government units to ensure the safety of passengers in ports and to provide emergency transportation if necessary. ‘Apart from precautionary measures in place at ports during inclement weather, we would also like to ask for understanding from the public at times that queues get longer than expected at ports since passengers and vessels accumulate within its vicinity when rough seas cause trip cancellations,’ he said. In addition, he said repairs for its damaged facilities due to typhoons are ongoing. Earlier in June, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration announced the beginning of the rainy season and the possibility of ‘above-normal rainfall’ due to habagat. This despite El Niño increasing the likelihood of below-normal rainfall conditions in some areas of the country.

Source: Philippines News Agency