SAN MANUEL– “ Don’t panic.”

SAN MANUEL– “ Don’t panic.”

This was the message of Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap to the people in the Ilocos region over the dry spell being experienced in the area over the last few weeks.

Yap, in a talk to newsmen during his visit of the San Roque Dam Monday, said the weather condition is an effect of an extended dry spell in Northern and Central Luzon and not drought.

The situation, he pointed out, is not as serious as in 1996 and 2004 when Luzon suffered a severe drought.

“This year, we are not yet under El Nino. We are only under extended dry spell because at times, there were intermittent rains, precipitations,” Yap said.

Yap said the big rains must come after two weeks, otherwise it is back to square one again for farmers in Pangasinan and the San Roque Dam.

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