Sunday, July 15, 2007 Pampanga situation still stable: agency
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO -- The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) assured that the situation in Central Luzon and Pampanga is still normal despite the three-day sporadic rains brought about by typhoon Bebeng, which hit the province.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pag-asa) earlier announced that Bebeng is pulling the rains into the southwestern part of the country. The areas most affected by the typhoon are the provinces of Zambales and Bataan.
According to OCD Regional Operating Officer Bobby Manalo, the general situation in the province is still "normal" and no reports have been given to their office about sporadic flooding.
"We have not heard from town officials. As of now, we are still monitoring and coordinating with the local government units to present contingency plans for their respective towns," Manalo said.
Manalo said because of the recent national elections, town officials are still organizing their ranks and still under the process of transition. As of today, some towns in Pampanga have not submitted their Deputized Civil Defense Officer.
"The deputized Civil Defense Officers are the ones responsible for the plans and contingency measures in their towns. So far we only have a few names but we are continuously coordinating and asking our local officials to submit the names of their officers," he added.
The OCD reported that most of the provinces in Central Luzon have started dredging and clearing operations. In Pampanga, some towns have started cleaning their canals and waterways. But there are still some towns that have not taken yet any measure to prepare their areas for the coming floods.
In Guagua, one of the flood-prone areas in the province, local officials have started cleaning the canals of the central business district.
Manalo assured that in case of calamities that would warrant the department's immediate action, their people and logistics are all up and ready for mobilization. However, he stressed that the responsibility for the first-hand response to any calamity lay on the hands of local government officials.
Ready
"Our people are ready to respond and our preparedness in terms of helping local government units is well coordinated with partner agencies."
These were the assuring words of OCD Regional Director Neri Amparo when asked by local reporters as regards the readiness of their office for the coming rainy season.
However, Amparo reiterated that their office is only a coordinating agency and that the readiness level should still emanate from the local government units.
She said their office has already coordinated with the Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Philippine National Red Cross and has started filling their stockpiles for the coming season.
The Department of Education was also tapped in case of the need to evacuate people affected by flooding and other calamities.
Amparo cited the towns of Guagua, Minalin and Candaba as major areas of concern in terms of flooding. But she also warned people in elevated areas to be prepared for spontaneous flooding.
"We have places last year that were flooded even though they were not flood areas," she said.
The North Luzon Command, she also said, is ready for mobilization when calamities strike but Amparo firmly stated that local government units in the town level must be able to give first-hand support and self-reliance in answering cases of calamities.
The agency has also identified hazard areas in Pampanga and the entire region.
On March 26 to 30, the agency developed its search and rescue capabilities by sending their personnel to Subic to increase their knowledge in water search and rescue. Despite of this, Amparo is asking people in hazard prone areas to be very vigilant to be always prepared. (IOF)
