PLDT and Smart have activated emergency response personnel and have prepared critical equipment as TS Dante continues to barrel towards mainland Luzon. 

Quick response teams are on standby to repair communication assets that will be affected by the storm.

Generator sets have also been prepared ready to be deployed in distressed areas and in key communication sites. Other than the threat of TS Dante, Luzon is also experiencing rotational brownouts due to rising power demand. 

PLDT and Smart are talking with different local government units on how they can assist communities that are on the path of TS Dante. 

Smart has earlier extended communication support to the Southern Leyte Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, now conducting rescue operations in Maasin City because of massive flooding. It has also provided communication aid to the Albay Public Safety and Emergency Management Office (APSEMO) as Bicol braced for the tropical cyclone. 

Smart is also ready to deploy Libreng Tawag (free calls), Libreng Charging (free charging), Libreng WiFi (free wifi) stations to aid communication needs of residents who will be affected by the storm. In the past, these pop-up communication booths have become the lifeline for affected residents to connect with their relatives. 

Smart has also frontloaded its retailers and business partners with inventory, so they’ll have enough credits to offer customers in the coming days. 

On Wednesday afternoon, PAGASA has raised Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal No. 2 over the northern portion of Romblon, Marinduque, northern and central parts of Oriental and Occidental Mindoro, Batangas, Cavite, Bataan, southwestern portion of Bulacan, western portion of Pampanga and Tarlac, Zambales, and western portion of Pangasinan. 

The state weather bureau expects TS Dante to weaken into a tropical depression after making landfall in Luzon tonight or tomorrow morning.