City officials strongly urged the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (CDRRMC) to study the possible recommendation of declaration of the state of calamity over the portion of the city public market razed by the recent 5-hour fire.
Under Resolution NO. 175,series of 2023, local legislators stated that in its issued Memorandum Order No. 60, series of 2019 dated June 17, 2019, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) outlined the revised guidelines for the declaration of a state of calamity where the declaration and lifting of a state of calamity may be issued primarily by the local Sanggunian upon the recommendation of the LDRRMC of the relevant local government unit, adhering to the criteria set forth in the set of guidelines.
The council also directed the CDRRMO to submit to the body a damage assessment report and the needs analysis.
Earlier, a portion of Block 3, the kaldero section, and the entire Block 4 of the city public market were razed by fire that started late evening of March 11, 2023 and was put out by the early morning of March 12, 2023.
Further, the fire which was reported to have originated from Block 4 and spread rapidly to the adjoining sections has totally burned and damaged approximately 1,700 stalls with estimated loss of around P24 million.
Fortunately, there were no reported casualties due to the incident but the blaze has displaced thousands of stall owners and greatly affected their livelihoods and their normal lives.
Likewise, the adjoining buildings and stalls were also affected as their goods and supplies were exposed to extreme heat from the fire that lasted for more than 5 hours.
The body stipulated that the areas or portions of the market destroyed by the fire are shared or within the barangays of Upper Market Subdivision, Padre Zamora and Abanao-Zandueta-Kayang-Chugum-Otek.
A state of calamity as defined under the pertinent provisions of Republic Act (RA) 10121, otherwise known as the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010, is a condition involving mass casualty/or major damages to property, disruption of means of livelihood, roads and normal way of life of people in the affected areas as a result of the occurrence of natural or human-induced hazards.
The law defined ‘disaster’ as a serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a society involving widespread human, material, economic or environmental losses and impacts, which exceeds the ability of the affected community or society to cope using its own resources.
Moreover, disasters are often described as a result of the combination of the exposure to a hazard, the conditions of vulnerability that are present, and insufficient capacity or measures to reduce or cope with the potential negative consequences. Disaster impacts may include loss of life, injury, disease and other negative effects on human, physical, mental and social wellbeing, together with damage to property, destruction of assets, loss of services, social and economic disruption and environmental degradation.