TUBOD, Lanao del Norte — The Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC) in Region 10 has chosen this town for its second quarter Nationwide Simultaneous Earthquake Drill (NSED) held on June 21.
Rosauro Arnel Gonzales Jr., regional director of the Office of Civil Defense in Region 10 (OCD-10) and RDRRMC-10 chairperson, said the local drill was conducted simultaneously nationwide along with local disaster response councils.
Gonzales was joined by Tubod Mayor Leoncio Bagol and officials of national line agencies during the ceremonial earthquake drill that started at 2 p.m.
Students of Rufo dela Cruz Integrated Schools and hundreds of local residents performed the duck, cover and hold manuever after hearing a loud 60-second siren signaling a magnitude 7.2 earthquake.
The participants also performed other safety maneuvers during various scenarios in the drill, such as rapid damage Assessment and needs analysis, camp coordination and camp management, search rescue and retrieval, fire suppression, emergency medical response, high and angle rescue, and road accident.
Gonzales cited the importance of the earthquake drill activity, saying its will instill in among community members preparedness and awareness during an earthquake.
“Aside from this, it will also show the people how the government is capable in responding during a disaster, gaining the confidence of the community and achieving a multiplier effect in the process,” Gonzales said.
Mayor Leoncio C. Bagol lauded the presence of all participating sectors despite the bad weather, thanking them for completing the drill.
“The earthquake drill is a big help to us by training us to be to be well-versed in disaster response. This could save lives since there is no way of knowing when a big earthquake can occur,” Bagol said. (Irma Boza/PNA)
