ROLLY'S FURY. A house was swept away by flashfloods in Guinobatan, Albay following the onslaught of Typhoon Rolly on Sunday (Nov. 1, 2020). The Philippine National Police on Monday (Nov. 2, 2020) said it would assist in the enforcement of price freeze on basic commodities and other essential goods in areas that would be placed under a state of calamity due to the typhoon. (Photo courtesy of PIA Region 5)
MANILA – The Philippine National Police (PNP) will assist the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in the enforcement of price freeze on basic commodities and other essential items in areas that would be placed under a state of calamity due to the onslaught of Typhoon Rolly (international name Goni).
In a press statement Monday, PNP chief, Gen. Camilo Pancratius Cascolan, said under Republic Act 7581 or the Price Act of the Philippines, automatic price control is up in areas that are declared under a state of calamity for a period of not more than 60 days.
Aside from listed essential goods and prime commodities being monitored by the DTI, this also covers those under the regulation of the Department of Agriculture and Department of Health such as rice, sugar, poultry, and dairy products, cooking oil, fuel, and medical supplies.
Cascolan assured PNP units that suffered infrastructure damage from "Rolly" of appropriate support from the National Headquarters in Camp Crame, Quezon City to allow these units to resume normal operations in these facilities.
“As soon as all damage assessment reports are in, we can begin restoration work for damaged PNP facilities, he said. Also, Cascolan ordered all police directors in affected regions to lead post-disaster clean-up, relief, and rehabilitation operations of regional and provincial police offices. PNP units were instructed to initiate clearing operations of highways and main thoroughfares to allow smooth passage of emergency services, relief caravans, and commercial cargo. In the spirit of 'Bayanihan', the PNP is linking arms with local government units, state agencies, and non-government organizations (NGOs) in rebuilding and rising from the devastation left by Typhoon 'Rolly',” Cascolan said.
He added the “the readiness of LGUs and police units in responding to emergencies and firm implementation of disaster mitigation measures resulted in minimal casualties despite the destructive force of the super typhoon."
The PNP remains on full alert as Tropical Storm Siony (international name Atsani) entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) on Sunday.
Cascolan ordered all police commanders to coordinate with local government units (LGUs) and local offices of the Office of Civil Defense on the specific assistance that the police could provide to ensure public safety.
“We are in coordination with LGUs for pre-emptive evacuations. We are currently conducting preventive evacuation of all people residing near coastal areas. Here at the national headquarters, we activated the Reactionary Standby Support Force or RSSF for possible augmentation and to lead during critical incident management and disaster response of PNP,” Cascolan said.
The PNP has prepared food packs and 1,740 sacks of rice for the relief operations in areas hardly hit by Typhoon “Rolly” while PNP Food Bank resources were prepositioned within the proximity of designated evacuation centers for immediate assistance to affected areas.
Cascolan said they readied the availability of PNP trucks for our Libreng Sakay Program to transport stranded residents back to their respective places.
“We are calling on our people in affected areas to stay safe, alert and informed, and heed the orders of authorities particularly for preemptive evacuation that may be enforced. The PNP will be there where we are needed most, and together we will weather the storm,” he said. (PNA)
