The Bacolod City government is among the 23 cities in the Visayas who are recipients of an automated weather station facility from the Weather Philippines Foundation Inc. of the Aboitiz Power Inc. and Union Bank.

The solar-powered rain-gauge facility, that is intended to help in weather forecasting and disaster risk reduction management of the city, is composed of a console, metrilog and integrated sensor suite (ISS) that can read wind direction, volume, speed and weather humidity.

Joemarie Vargas, City Disaster Risk Reduction Management head, said the weather equipment was provided by the Weather Philippines Foundation Inc. that has partnered with the League of Cities of the Philippines in selecting the recipients of the facility.

He said the technical installation of the facility at the roof deck of the Bacolod Government Center will be done by a team led by Allan Agbones of the City Engineer's Office.

Vargas said, “With the help of this equipment, we can have our own forecasting unlike the automated weather station and four rain gauge facilities provided by the Department of Science and Technology through the Office of the Congressman, where they have no access to information since the data is fed directly to Manila.”

Agbones said the facility acquired by the city has a coverage of 300-meter radius from the source.

Weather Philippines, Inc. general manager, Celso Caballero, said the donation is part of the Aboitiz corporate social responsibility and commitment to cover 80 units of automated weather station facilities to members of the League of Provinces and 130 members of the League of Cities.

Caballero said the findings of the automated weather station facility will not in any way conflict with the findings of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Administration (PAGASA) but will, in fact, augment the findings of the weather bureau.

He said 23 units were given to the cities in Panay and Negros islands including Danao City in Cebu on October 4, 2012.

Local government personnel of these cities underwent a one-day installation and maintenance training at the Iloilo City Hall, he added.

Senior vice president Mark Vornhusen of Metromedia who sold the units to Aboitiz said each one costs about US$2,500 or, roughly, P100,000.  

The unit combines technology from the United States, Switzerland and Australia.

The weather station package will use solar power with a range of radio transmission from 60 meters to 120 meters up to 300 meters if there is a line of sight.

The distance from the console to sensor or location should not exceed 100 meters.

It has a global radiation sensor and UV sensor exposed by direct sunlight.* CGS

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