EDITORIAL - Storm warning

The last time the weather bureau slipped in its typhoon forecast, its chief meteorologist lost his job. The bigger casualty, of course, was the public. Millions of people were caught unprepared by the fury of Typhoon “Basyang” and the consequent blackouts in Metro Manila. Prisco Nilo was fired as chief meteorologist shortly after President Aquino berated the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration for failing to predict that Metro Manila would be hit directly by Basyang.

PAGASA meteorologists have not seen their pay or facilities upgraded since that debacle, and their ranks are one fewer following Nilo’s departure. But Filipinos have learned to fill in the gaps in PAGASA’s forecasting capability through the Internet, accessing websites of other storm tracking agencies overseas, particularly those that accurately tracked the movement and strength of Basyang and last year’s killer typhoons, Ondoy and Pepeng.

This weekend, those international storm trackers have warned that a typhoon with a potential to become a Category 5 hurricane – the most powerful – is expected to hit the country soon. Typhoon Megi could pack winds of up to 250 kilometers per hour, storm trackers warned. The last time winds that powerful struck the country, Metro Manila went without electricity for several days, with some areas seeing power restored only after a week.

After Ondoy and Pepeng, the government presumably is better prepared to deal with unusually heavy rainfall and cataclysmic flooding. Agencies involved in rescue and relief operations have procured additional boats. With warnings issued about the destructive potential of the approaching typhoon, evacuation centers and procedures should be in place. Health teams must be ready for outbreaks of water-borne diseases, dengue, leptospirosis and even athlete’s foot.

Megi could weaken as it approaches the country. But the country serves as a welcome mat for weather disturbances in the Pacific, and tragic experience should teach us that it’s always better to be prepared, even if a storm eventually weakens in its approach, than to be sorry. Batten down the hatches.