Negros Occidental on red alert as TD Wilma nears

By Dolly Yasa

BACOLOD CITY — Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson has ordered the pre-emptive evacuation of residents in high-risk areas and raised the province’s Red Alert Status as Tropical Depression “Wilma” intensified on Thursday, December 4, 2025.

Executive Order No. 25-28 was issued in the afternoon, following PAGASA’s Tropical Cyclone Bulletin No. 1, which confirmed at 11:00 a.m. that a low-pressure area had developed into a tropical depression east of Eastern Visayas.

As of 10:00 a.m., TD Wilma was located 625 kilometers east of Catarman, Northern Samar (12.6°N, 130.4°E), with maximum sustained winds of 45 kilometers per hour and gusts up to 55 kilometers per hour.

The storm’s strong winds extend outward up to 200 kilometers from the center and it is moving west-southwest at 20 kilometers per hour.

In response, the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (PDRRMC) activated the Emergency Operations Center and placed it on Red Alert, mobilizing all provincial response clusters.

Activated response units include Camp Coordination and Camp Management, Food and Non-Food Items, Logistics, Search and Rescue, Health, Law and Order, Clearing and Civil Works, and Education.

Governor Lacson, who chairs the PDRRMC, emphasized the importance of acting early to protect lives and property.

The council called for the evacuation of residents in flood-prone, landslide-prone, and storm-surge-prone areas.

All city and municipal mayors have been instructed to initiate evacuations in coordination with risk assessments from the Mines and Geosciences Bureau and local disaster offices.

The executive order authorizes forced evacuation if individuals refuse to leave despite confirmed threats to their safety.

Local government units must prepare evacuation centers with food, water, electricity, medical kits, and proper sanitation in line with national Camp Coordination and Camp Management guidelines.

The Provincial Information Office and local disaster units will conduct ongoing public information campaigns to ensure timely dissemination of alerts and safety instructions.

Local DRRM offices are required to submit preparedness and response reports and must document all weather-related incidents by reporting to the Provincial EOC via negocc.commandcenter@gmail.com.

Governor Lacson urged all agencies and LGUs to comply with emergency protocols as the province braces for the potential impact of TD Wilma.

The Red Alert Status and evacuation orders will remain in effect until the PDRRMC declares the threat from TD Wilma has passed.