MALAYBALAY CITY – The local government unit here plans to engage more community volunteers as it seeks to boost its preparedness against destructive forest fires, which are common throughout Bukidnon province during the summer season.
Maria Maida Apostol, City Local Government Operations Officer, said local residents in communities prone to forest or bush fires remain the most reliable “front liners” in suppressing conflagrations.
Apostol said the city has started tapping community volunteers to help village officials implement preparedness and mitigation measures during forest fires.
The local government gathered some 250 community fire volunteers from 14 organizations and 10 villages in the city during the Wild Fire Prevention and Suppression Forum held last week, she said.
She said the city is looking to increase further the number of community volunteers, who will be trained in mitigation and preparedness to complement the capabilities of the local fire brigade.
Fire Officer 2 Ruperto Palma, chief operations officer of the local Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) office, underscored the role of fire volunteers to the city’s Wild Fire Emergency Management program.
Palma noted that BFP personnel can only respond to conflagrations, but community volunteers can help prevent forest fires through heightened awareness and in sharing fire prevention practices to other residents.
Maria Anita Fernandez, city environment and natural resources officer (City ENRO), said bush fires have recently ravaged the research center of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
She added that several villages including Brgys. Casisang and Kalasungay, have been also hit by conflagrations recently.
“We are expecting more forest or bush fires to happen in the coming days and we must be prepared for it,” Fernandez said.
Alan Comiso, a local disaster risk reduction and management officer, said the city has already allocated funds for the training of volunteers and for the purchase of equipment intended for at least five fire response teams.
Two years ago, Mt. Kitanglad Range Natural Park and Mt. Kalatungan—two of Budkinon’s remaining rainforests—were hit by conflagration that took days to put out. (Mel B. Madera/PNA)
