Prices of veggies down in Benguet, as Ompong approaches PHL

The prices of some vegetables traded in La Trinidad, Benguet province have gone down as crops were harvested ahead of Typhoon Ompong's expected onslaught.

According to the report of Mariz Umali on State of the Nation with Jessica Soho, vegetables such as cabbage, celery, peas, broccoli and baguio beans were brought to the market by truckloads on Wednesday to be sold.

Farmers interviewed on the report said they decided to harvest crops ahead of harvest time so they would not be damaged by the heavy rainfall.

Other farmers, meanwhile, have decided to shield their crops from the weather with heavy duty plastic sheets.

"Natatakot sa malakas na ulan baka kasi masira...Kasi 'pag nasira 'yan, Ma'am, wala nang babalik sa farmer. Kasi 'pag nasira 'yan, pag nasalanta, hindi na puwedeng anihin," a vegetable supplier, Alvin Garcia, said.

"Pag napitas na, pag nasira na ng bagyo, eh di wala na. Nasira na ang lahat," added another farmer, Efren Elias.

Red alert

Typhoon Ompong, which entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Wednesday afternoon, was last seen 1,145 kilometers east of Virac, Catanduanes at 4 p.m.

According to the report, the Baguio CDRRMO has issued an early advisory saying its emergency operations center will be on red alert by midnight  to prepare for the typhoon's possible effects.

Rescue and disaster response equipment have been prepared, along with ambulances, firetrucks and wreckers positioned on standby.

"Because of the slope terrain ng Baguio City, karamihan ng aming incidents ay landslides, mostly rain-induced ang mga 'yan," Baguio CDRRMO research and planning officer Louie Glenn Lardizabal said.

He added that those in areas identified to be vulnerable to landslides were advised to consider preemptive evacuation. — Margaret Claire Layug, BAP, GMA News