Wise words from the weatherman

“IT is very important to listen to Pagasa. And if they tell you to a storm is coming, listen and prepare. De- clog your canals, clean your roof and cut off the branches of trees that might ruin the electric lines. There are a lot of things you can do to help lessen the impact of harsh weather.”

“We still have a lot of storms on the way. We had eight so far, but normally we have at least 20 storms per year. Last May and June, we didn’t experience any storms, which is abnormal. May and June are supposed to have one or two typhoons. Come July, we had four, which is higher than what Pagasa is expected. So this August until December, we will still have more than 10 typhoons probably coming. And these kinds of time, the storms are stronger.”

“Many ask, ‘Are we going to experience another Yolanda or Ondoy?’ It is possible, but when it will happen, no one knows. It can be this year, next year, or the coming years. The only thing we can make sure of is the readiness of the people. The Philippines is the only country in the world that has 20 typhoons in a year so we must take everything seriously even though we are used to it.”

“Not all strong typhoons and drought can be blamed on climate change. But what is scary is that climate change has affected rainfall patterns. Come dry season, there may be lesser rains, and in the wet season, there may be double the number of rainfall. Or we may have lesser typhoons but they can be stronger than the usual.”