ILOILO CITY — Trips of motor bancas plying the Iloilo–Buenavista and Iloilo-Jordan routes will be suspended at 6 p.m. Thursday due to Typhoon Ompong.
The preemptive measure would ensure the safety of the passengers, said Lt. Rodolfo dela Peña, Iloilo station commander of the Philippine Coast Guard, in an interview.
“We cannot predict the weather so we do not want our passengers to be at risk when they travel at night,” he said.
He said the 6 p.m. cut-off time may be carried out as long as the typhoon is within the Philippine Area of Responsibility.
These motor bancas are catering to thousands of passengers daily and normal travel time is from 6 a.m. until 9 p.m., he said.
Dela Peña said the preemptive measure was decided upon after a meeting with both the Motorbanca Associations of Jordan and Buenavista in the morning.
Dela Peña said there are about 35 motor bancas operating from Iloilo-Guimaras Terminal in Fort San Pedro, Iloilo to Buenavista, Guimaras, and 30 motor bancas operating from Ortiz Wharf in Iloilo City to Jordan Wharf in Guimaras.
“During peak hours in the afternoon, there are more than 200 passengers traveling,” he said.
As of this writing, dela Peña said the operation of motor bancas were still normal.
He advised passengers to travel early to avoid long lines.
“We are expecting that passengers will flock to our terminals this (Thursday) afternoon,” he said.
He said only the trips of fastcraft plying the Iloilo-Bacolod City route is not affected by the 6 p.m. cut-off time since the scheduled last trips are at 5 p.m.
Based on the advisory of the Office of Civil Defense 6 (Western Visayas) issued at 11 a.m., “Ompong” has slightly slowed down moving westward of the Philippine Sea.
It was located at 725 km east of Virac, Catanduanes with maximum sustained winds of 205 kilometer per hour near the center and gustiness of up to 255 kilometer per hour. (Cindy Ferrer/PNA)
