Philippines: OCD-6 stresses importance of preparedness during calamities, disasters
Iloilo - Office of Civil Defense (OCD) 6 Director Rosario Cabrera has stressed anew the importance of preparedness for any unexpected event such as natural hazards and disasters.
Cabrera issued the statement when interviewed by the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) following the 6.3 magnitude earthquake that hit New Zealand on Tuesday, February 23, causing deaths, injuries and widespread damages to buildings and roads.
It will be recalled that on 10:10 am of that day, a quake hit Metro Manila and nearby provinces in Luzon which was recorded by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology at 4.7 in magnitude.
"Let us just continue with our natural hazards and disaster preparedness measures so that when a disaster or an earthquake strikes, we are prepared and ready," said Cabrera, as she noted that the region is one of the earthquake prone areas in the country.
Western Visayas has five major earthquake generators. These are the Negros Fault, West Panay Fault, Central Negros Fault, Tablas Fault and the Zone Collision between the islands of Palawan and Mindoro.
Cabrera said as part of their continued efforts to create awareness and instill preparedness among residents in the region, an earthquake drill is conducted every quarter in schools and other institutions in the region. Also, conducted are information dissemination drives on disaster preparedness.
"These natural hazards are impossible to prevent from happening but their negative impacts maybe mitigated if we are prepared", Cabrera added.
(JCM/LAF/PIA-Iloilo)