LEGAZPI CITY -– Some residents of this city, who had been following up the movements of typhoon ‘Mina’, have criticized the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical, Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) for its slow and inaccurate tracking of the weather disturbance.

        On Nov. 21, PAGASA issued a weather advisory on tropical storm ‘Mina’ which was located at 870 kms east of Bicol with 85 kph sustained winds and moving westward at 19 kph.

        According to PAGASA’s initial tracking, Mina was expected 495 kms east of Virac, Catanduanes on Thursday, Nov. 22 and was expected to be 130 kms east of the same place on Friday morning. The tropical storm was expected to pass through Camarines Norte on Saturday morning.

        But on Nov. 22, while PAGASA said that Mina which had become now a full-blown typhoon with 175 kph sustained winds and gustiness of 210 kph had changed direction and it was expected to hit Albay and Sorsogon, its movements started to slow down from 19 kph to 11 kph, 9 kph and finally at 7 kph.

        On Friday, PAGASA raised typhoon signal No. 3 in Catanduanes, Albay, Sorsogon, Camarines Sir, Camarines Norte and Burias Island.

        But the Albayanos wondered why, despite the impending typhoon, the province remained calm and rain was hardly to be felt.

        In the evening of Friday, Nathaniel Cruz, PAGASA chief forecaster, was interviewed by Bombo Radyo-Legazpi. Cruz said that the typhoon had remained stationary for about six hours east of Virac, Catanduanes.

        He had two scenarios on the direction of typhoon Mina: first it was expected to pass through Albay and Sorsogon. He said the second possibility that instead of moving west southwest, it would be moving west northwest thus sparing Bicol.

        Antonio Arispe, retired PAGASA forecaster, said that, according to the Japan Meteoroligical Agency, Mina would go up a little and was expected to hit Aurora province instrad of Bicol.

        During a briefing at the Office of Civil Defense (OCD), a reporter asked if PAGASA has “low-tech equipment” that’s why it could not accurately track the movements of typhoons.

        But Gov. Joey Sarte Salceda, PDCC chairman of Albay, defended PAGASA saying that, despite its faults and shortcomings, it remains to be the authority on weather disturbances.

        So, instead of criticizing it, the government should upgrade the weather forecasting equipment of PAGASA, the governor added.