HUNDREDS of responders were all set during the Mustering of Responders and Official Activation of Davao Regional Incident Management Team (RIMT) Thursday in preparation for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit chairmanship launching slated on Sunday, January 15, seeking to boost their ability to quickly respond to emergency requirement.
In an interview after the mustering of assets at Crocodile Park, Maa, Davao City, Office of Civil Defense regional director Brigadier General Leoncio Cirunay said the activity was part of their disaster preparedness measures for the major event this weekend that also signaled the start of the responders' deployment to their respective areas.
Cirunay said around 500 responders and volunteers will be present from different areas in Davao Region, ready to respond when untoward incidents occur during the staging of the summit as some 1,000 foreign and local delegates are expected to be in Davao City.
He added this will help in evaluating the capacity of all equipment for a disaster-free activity and instill to the responders the appropriate protocols to ensure that they are all well-equipped.
The three staging areas, with emergency preparedness and response components where the responders will be pre-positioned are in Lanang (near Go Hotel), Roxas Avenue (near Red Cross) and Central 911 wherein the incident post is situated is led by Emmanuel Jaldon and the emergency operations center will be the Public Safety and Security Command Center.
The responders will remain on stand-by throughout the Asean Summit.
He said this is also their way to showcase the competence of the responders of the Davao Region and prove that they are capable of addressing emerging emergencies to ensure the safety of the delegates.
Cirunay said the responders already underwent series of trainings on how to respond when unexpected incidents happen and noted that unlike before, the responder now has a medical skill on reviving a patient.