Before the descent of Typhoon Ulysses last November 11, 2020 in the country, the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has issued a sufficient amount of landslide bulletins in Bicol Region and initialized its Emergency Operation Center (EOC) in CALABARZON.

Prior to its onslaught of Ulysses, Typhoon Rolly also made landfall in Bicol in early November. According to MGB Director Atty. Wilfredo G. Moncano, the bureau, a member of the inter-agency Pre-Disaster Risk Assessment Core Group, has been providing disaster risk reduction managers with “guidance on appropriate preparedness and response actions during periods of impending hazards.”

Actual site investigations of MGB technical personnel from Bicol and CALABARZON determined that Typhoon Ulysses brought extensive flooding and several landslide incidents. However, from as early as November 10, MGB-Regional Office No. 5 (RO 5) has been issuing its landslide bulletin and landslide warning bulletins that alerted the residents of areas susceptible to landslide and flooding. MGB-RO 5 Regional Director Mr. Guillermo Molina, Jr. stated they were able to predict possible landslides days before it occurred through the aforementioned bulletins.

The landslide bulletins have pointed out possible landslides in specific areas based on rainfall models of the global forecasting system, while the landslide warning bulletins yielded possible scenarios that could happen and recommended actions for Albay residents.

On the other hand, MGB-RO 4A has operated its EOC during the arrival of Ulysses to keep track of the tropical cyclone’s effects in the CALABARZON. MGB-RO 4A employees began distributing barangay listings of flood and landslide susceptibility ratings last November 8 to the regional offices of EOC member-agencies in CALABARZON, which are:  the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Philippine Information Agency, the Office of Civil Defense, and the provincial and city disaster risk reduction and management offices. 

With the activation of EOC, the technical personnel were able to collate reports about the flooding and landslide incidents from their respective assigned provinces in CALABARZON immediately.

By: Mineral Economics, Information and Publication Division