Philippine ports are on heightened alert until November 10 as the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) prepares for the expected influx of passengers in view of the school semester break and the celebration of All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day.
PPA general manager Atty. Jay Daniel R. Santiago said the heightened alert status is to ensure the safety and security of all passengers at the ports while maintaining order in port operations.
“Our ports will be very busy in the coming days and this early, we are putting in place various measures to guarantee that ports will remain fully functional, reliable and convenient for the sea-traveling public,” Santiago said in a statement.
The PPA chief also discouraged overbooking of vessels, which he said “oftentimes results in more delays in vessel turnaround time.”
“This is part of the culture of safety, security and comfort being implemented by the agency in all its ports nationwide without any exemptions,” Santiago added.
All port management offices are also ordered to intensify efforts in all Malasakit Help Desks (MHDs) in compliance with the order issued by the Department of Transportation relative to the conduct of “Oplan Biyaheng Ayos: Undas 2019.”
PPA has also deployed 80 new port police officers to augment PPA’s existing police force in all its 115 ports nationwide.
PPA noted that, next to Christmas and the school summer break, the All Saints’ and All Souls’ Day period has the third biggest surge in the volume of passengers.
PPA said passenger numbers in ports like Batangas, Mindoro, Bicol, Surigao, Iloilo, and Dumaguete, among others, surge by more than 30% daily for the entire duration of the All Saints’ Day/All Souls’ Day break.
It also noted that this is also usually the time when unscrupulous individuals prey on unsuspecting sea-going passengers and lure them to buy additional insurance cover for their trip and other items non-essential to their voyage.
PPA added that the influx of passengers also makes ports more susceptible to attacks from lawless elements, particularly in areas where the threat of terror is high.
Among the procedures being implemented to address such concerns are the continued visibility of PPA police and the security guards within the port area and passenger terminal buildings (PTBs), and the provision of well-ventilated PTBs, clean comfort rooms, nursing stations and other travel amenities including efficient and reliable Wi-Fi connectivity.
Round-the-clock medical and passenger assistance counters and passenger help desks are also around to provide immediate assistance to passengers.
PPA is likewise designating an express lane for passengers carrying minimal belongings, as well as making available holding, waiting, or embarkation areas to segregate screened from unscreened persons.
PPA is also requesting passengers to segregate and declare metallic objects and bladed tools for industry use for these to be tagged, turned over for safekeeping and finally retrieved by the owner at the port of destination.
“We are appealing to the sea-going public to understand the security procedures being undertaken as this is all for their safety and convenience,” Santiago added.
Vessel operators are likewise encouraged to assist in information dissemination in the event operations or ticketing is suspended for whatever reasons and to provide information on when affected passengers can be accommodated on succeeding trips.
