ILOILO City – As Severe Tropical Storm “Fung‑Wong” (to be named “Uwan” upon entry into the Philippine Area of Responsibility) closes in, schools and local governments in Western Visayas are ramping up disaster preparedness amid mounting risks of flooding and landslides.
According to the Department of Education – Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Service (DepEd-DRRMS), a nationwide hazard-mapping exercise has identified some 11,968 schools in 120 divisions as vulnerable to flooding and 12,747 schools in 110 divisions as exposed to rain-induced landslides.
While the bulk of the mapped risk covers all over the archipelago, regional offices such as DepEd Regional Office 6 (Western Visayas) have been placed on heightened alert following earlier typhoon damage in the area.
The regional disaster-risk office reports that over 2,800 schools across Western Visayas provinces have already suspended face-to-face classes or reverted to alternative learning modes after the preceding storm Typhoon “Kalmaegi” (“Tino”). With Fung-Wong/Uwan forecast to carry heavy rain bands and high-seas hazards, regional officials are urging full activation of safety protocols.
The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) has likewise called on all local government units in Western Visayas to clear drainage‐ways, inspect roads and bridges, ready evacuation centers and ensure schools within at-risk barangays are prepared for pre-emptive suspension or shutdown.
The national meteorological service, Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), reports that “Fung-Wong” is expected to enter the PAR by late Friday, November 7 or early Saturday, November 8, and may intensify into a typhoon or even super-typhoon category.
Given the region’s previous exposure to storm surge and landslide-prone terrain, DepEd-6 urges school division offices to:
Activate their School Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (SDRRM) teams and contingency plans.
Preposition emergency learning-and-safety materials and relocate equipment/materials away from low-lying zones.
Liaise closely with LGUs and local DRRM councils to monitor rainfall, slope-stability advisories, and possible class suspensions.
“Even though the storm has not yet made landfall, the wide-reaching rain-bands and outer wind-circulation pose real hazard to our school communities in Western Visayas,” one DepEd-6 official said.
As the region braces for Uwan’s arrival, parents, guardians and school-coordinators are advised to stay alert to class-suspension announcements, secure school infrastructures (especially in hillside and flood-prone sites), and keep updated via official local government and DepEd-VI channels./PN
