Ten days before Christmas, member agencies of the Cordillera Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (CRDRRMC) convene for a Pre-Disaster Risk Assessment (PDRA) meeting in preparations for the upcoming holidays.
Selected members of the Cordillera RDRRMC PDRA core group gathered at Office of Civil Defense Cordillera (OCD-CAR) Operations Center on December 15, 2016 for an inter-agency coordination to ensure public safety during holiday season.
Dir Andrew Alex Uy, OCD CAR Regional Director and CRDRRMC Chairperson said that the alert level status will be raised from white to blue effective December 17, 2016 up to January 2, 2016 to support the monitoring of safety, coordination, and facilitation of emergency responses.
Likewise, all Local DRRMCs in the Cordillera were also advised to be synchronized with the CRDRRMC OpCen alert status.
Most agencies present are from the response clusters – National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA), Police Regional Office Cordillera (PROCor), Tactical Operations Group of the Philippine Air Force (PAF TOG1), Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), Department of Health – Cordillera (DOH – CAR) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines represented by the 503rd Brigade.
DOH – CAR has also coordinated with their provincial counter parts to monitor firework/firecracker related incidents and injuries in the region.
“Everyone is enjoined to prepare for any untoward incidents that may be a result of influx of tourists and commuting groups. We must also prepare for any untoward incidents that may be a result of hazardous New Year activities”, Dir. Uy added.
The Cordillera RDRRMC intensifies preparedness after Malacañang announces non-working holidays on December 26, 2016 and January 2, 2017 by virtue of Proclamation No. 117.
By Frances Ivy Carasi
