THE City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) is boosting emergency response work across Davao City this year, with plans to bring back motorcycle paramedic teams, add more satellite stations and move its main 911 office to cut through traffic delays.
During the Davao Peace and Security Press Corps on January 28, 2026, CDRRMO Assistant Head Rudy Encabo shared details on reviving the Fast Response Emergency Service, a program first used when former President Rodrigo Duterte was city mayor.
“Isa diha is atong ibalik ang motorcycle paramedics, katung nawala before. Tungod kay isa sa mga challenges nato ani kay dugay maabot atong ambulance sa katong nagatawag nato og emergency calls (One of the things we will bring back is the motorcycle paramedics, which were discontinued before. This is because one of our challenges is that our ambulances take too long to arrive when responding to emergency calls),” he said, adding that Colonel Alfredo Baloran, one of the division chiefs, has already emphasized the importance of reviving a protocol that was implemented during Duterte’s mayorship.
He highlighted that the goal is to ensure responders can reach the scene of incidents, particularly major accidents in urban areas, within five minutes or less.
The program will use pairs of motorcycles with two staff members each – one to carry tools and supplies, and one to act as paramedic.
He explained, “One pair of motorcycles: one will bring the equipment, and one will be the paramedic. Partner motorcycles and two personnel for first responder. They will be the ones to size up the situation if the caller needs an ambulance or first-aid only”.
Meanwhile, when asked about the current operations, Encabo said that the existing 911 satellite stations operate in Toril, Baganihan, Calinan, and Cabantian.
The Panacan station remains unusable because the building structures were damaged during the October 2025 earthquake.
“Naa mi problema sa Panacan tungod kay during last October earthquake, na pending iyang building structure. Nag-request mi sa Barangay Lasang, which is the entry point of Davao from northbound, nga makakita mi og lote na mabutangan namo og another 911 satellite station (“We have a problem in Panacan because during the October earthquake, the building structure there was put on hold. We requested Barangay Lasang, which is the entry point to Davao from the north, to help us find a lot where we can set up another 911 satellite station),” Encabo explained.
“Mao na ang among dagan karon for the year 2026. Challenge karon to expand, congestion sa kalsada medyo challenging — mao na ang among preparation for the year 2026 (“That is our current direction for the year 2026. Our challenge now is expansion, with road congestion being a major difficulty—this is what we are preparing for in 2026),” he added.
New CDRRMO office under construction in Ma-a
Meanwhile, Encable also revealed that construction is now underway for a new office at the former slaughterhouse site in Ma-a, marking a relocation from the current Sandawa location where the CDRRMO shares space with other government agencies.
The new facility will feature a spacious motorpool to shelter vehicles from the sun and rain. “When it comes man gud didto sa motorpool, dako ang, ang first place gibuhat namog motorpool. Ma-plastar nato, dili siya expose sa init ug ulan atong mga assets. So dako kaayo ang area na gi-prepare sa City Government (When it comes to the motor pool, the first thing we did was build a proper motor pool. It is paved, and our assets are not exposed to heat and rain. So the City Government prepared a very large area for this),” Encabo explained, highlighting the city government’s preparation for protecting critical response assets.
Sandawa Station to remain operational
Despite the relocation to Ma-a, Encabo emphasized that the Sandawa station will continue to function, ensuring that emergency assets remain strategically deployed. “Maintain gihapon namo na dira sa Sandawa for standby namo nga assets like ambulance and fire truck (“We will still maintain Sandawa as our standby area for assets such as ambulances and fire trucks),” he said. ALEXA JULIANA P. FRANCISCO/SUNSTAR INTERN, UIC