BOC wants own weather expert

MANILA, Philippines – The Bureau of Customs (BOC) is hiring a meteorologist to forecast weather conditions to support its port operations.

Customs Commissioner Alberto Lina said he is in search of a meteorologist who would be at his “beck and call.”

“So that if there would be a typhoon, whether there is a Customs district there or not, we would know,” he said.

Lina said he had been looking for a meteorologist since April. He said monitoring the erratic changes in the weather are crucial in the agency’s day-to-day operations.

Meteorologists, however, are much in demand. Some of the experienced weather analysts at the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) have gone abroad for better pay.

Besides, there are only a few schools offering a meteorology course in the Philippines.

“If there is heavy flooding, we have no (revenue) collection because there is no operation, so we are affected,” Lina said.

Lina said some private logistics firms and airlines have hired meteorologists, and since the BOC is in logistics operations, it is logical to get the services of a weather expert to advice them accordingly if there is an approaching storm.

Though the Customs can get weather advisories from PAGASA and Project NOAH (Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards), Lina said he would like a weather expert on call to advise them on the weather conditions that could affect their operations.

Lina stressed weather monitoring is important. “In fact, in some advanced countries, the first thing that people watch on television when they wake up in the morning is the weather channel,” he said.