Manila: The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) on Wednesday assured adequate government resources for response efforts amid the possible impact of Super Typhoon Leon (international name Kong-rey). In a message to reporters, OCD chief Undersecretary Ariel Nepomuceno said the government "always assumes the worst case scenario" for its preparations. He said this includes instructing concerned agencies on the "replenishment of all food and non-food items" that might be needed; ensuring enough water supply and pre-positioning of rescue teams. Nepomuceno said more than 1,200 rescue teams are ready to respond to typhoon-hit areas. Aside from this, Nepomuceno also said concerned agencies were instructed to intensify information dissemination and conduct forced evacuations in hazard-prone areas, as well as make sure that "communications (are) intact and redundant". In a separate interview, OCD spokesperson Director Edgar Posadas said their preparations for Leon's effects are in full blast. "We are in full throttle, w e are not taking this lightly," he added. Posadas also hoped that there would be no casualties attributed to Leon and that preemptive evacuation in landslide- and flood-prone areas are underway. Meanwhile, Nepomuceno said around 8,771 persons have been pre-emptively evacuated in the Ilocos Region, Cagayan Valley, and Central Luzon. The weather bureau said Leon, packing maximum sustained winds of 185 km. per hour (kph) near the center and gustiness of up to 230 kph, would be closest to the country's northernmost province of Batanes from late Wednesday night to Thursday morning. Source: Philippines News Agency