MMDA wants quake drills institutionalized

MANILA, Philippines - Following what it said was the successful conduct of the Metro Manila-wide earthquake drill last Thursday, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) now wants the drill to be institutionalized.

MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino, who also heads the Metro Manila Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (MMDRRMC), said yesterday the drill should be conducted regularly to train people on swift disaster response.

“With the success of the first metro-wide shake drill, I think this should be institutionalized,” he said, adding that the MMDA will push for “shake drills” to be conducted every year.

Tolentino said he is also in favor of holding earthquake drills in nearby provinces such as Bulacan, Cavite and Laguna, which are also covered by the West and East Valley Fault systems.

A movement in these faults may trigger a 7.2-magnitude earthquake that could leave at least 30,000 people in Metro Manila dead.

Rescuers on horseback

Should the “Big One” hit Metro Manila, residents might see rescue personnel riding horses to help them.

Andrew Uy, Office of Civil Defense-Cordillera Administrative Region (OCD-CAR) director, said they have been thinking “out of the box” to help the metropolis’ west quadrant. The CAR and Region 10 were assigned to assist this quadrant.

“We might use horses, that is also a possibility,” he said, adding that there are horses available in CAR that could be used if the need arises.

However, he said they have not yet thought of how the animal would be able to travel the distance from CAR to Metro Manila. 

“But in terms of mobility, the horses could travel even on rough terrain and even fit through narrow passageways. But the use of horses for transportation to bring in help is our last option,” Uy said.

The OCD-CAR official said that transporting their equipment and food packs via air remains their first option.

He said one of the first things they need to do is “identify the entry points. By air, if it is feasible to fly from Baguio City to Villamor Airbase. By water, we would go down to Poro Point in La Union and disembark at the South Harbor in Manila.”

Another idea is for fruit and vegetable truck owners to ferry the OCD-CAR’s rescue teams and equipment to Metro Manila, he said.  – With Evelyn Macairan