Ilagan, Isabela (CNN Philippines) — Isabela officials started evacuating early on Saturday (May 9) residents of the coastal towns of Dinapigue, Divalracan, Maconacon, and Palanan/
In the municipality of Benito Soliven, CNN Philippines joined disaster officials as they urged people living by the foot of a mountain slope in Sitio Barikir to move to designated camps for the meantime, warning them that heavy rain might cause landslides in the area.
It wasn’t easy to convince residents to move out, even with the help of the Army, because the sunny weather made it hard for them to believe that a big typhoon was approaching.
Provincial officials gave them an ultimatum: They will implement pre-emptive evacuation if they see people still seen roaming around the danger zones.
The typhoon is expected to hit land by 5:00 a.m. or 6:00 here.
There’s still no tell-tale signs of its approach. But some people here say there should be room for complacency.
The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council would not leave anything to chance as the province.
In fact, the coming typhoon has led to the cancellation of Isabela Day, which was supposed to be celebrated yesterday, Friday, and activities would have lasted until Sunday.
Emergency responders have been taken their stations.
Some 3,000 food packs have been distributed in these towns in case residents would have to be evacuated.
Authorities also warned of potential landslides in the towns of San Mariano and Benito Soliven.
The Sierra Madre mountain range could protect this province from strong winds, but Isabela is a natural catch basin: If Typhoon Dodong brings torrential rains, many of i’s towns may experience heavy flooding, authorities warned.
One thing that always happens in these situations is that power lines and communications system collapse in the aftermath of typhoons.
As a precaution against that, government workers have pruned off tree branches and other obstructions that could get tangled with power lines and and damage communication towers.
‘ ’15’: ‘image’: ‘jcr:7c8260be-557d-4cb3-b30c-c8098c827b7b’ ‘imageCaption’: ‘Ilagan, along with the rest of Isabela, has been stepping up preparations for Typhoon Dodong, which is expected to make landfall in that province early on Sunday, May 9, 2015. (Photo from the Ilagan Facebook page,
