LINGAYEN—To more strongly involve the provincial and local government units in flood management, local disaster managers in the province embarked on a hydro-meteorological study at the San Roque Power Corp. office in San Manuel.
Pangasinan Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council executive officer Col. Rhodyn Luchinvar Oro said the two-day Information, Education and Communication Campaign and Coordinating Conference was anchored on Gov. Amado Espino III’s “safety in unity” concept of calamity response.
“We trained the disaster managers in dam operations, flood and weather forecasting as well as how the San Roque Dam [SRD] is being run and what agencies are involved,” said Oro.
As the newly elected Pangasinan Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Federation president, he said the study, along with the recent Basic Incident Command System Course training, was a way to enable the city and municipal disaster managers to function on their own and unify efforts towards a more prepared, responsive and resilient Pangasinan during calamities.
Lance Baconguis
Aside from the SRD, the Agno River Basin was also included in the study as both bodies of water have flooded of the province in the past.
Lecture topics included ARB flooding mechanisms, flood forecasting and warning systems; SRD flood forecasting and warning systems for dam operations and safety; ARB flood control initiatives; and provincial-level DRR initiative with the July-December 2016 climate outlook and weather systems briefers.
The local disaster managers took an educational survey of the fourth largest dam in Asia to know how it operates.
Oro said the SRD emergency action plan was also presented, a part of which was slated to be tested for a simulation of the Early Warning System application of the towns of Bautista and Bayambang, Alcala and Sto. Tomas.
In the simulation, the PDRRMC will check the preparedness of the towns and villages near the riverine areas affected by the SRD’s water release and their observance of protocols as the frontline responders.
Oro said the council continues dredging operations on the ARB to brace the province for the four tropical storms forecast by the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomic Services Administration this month.
The study was sponsored by the SRPC, Pagasa, the Department of Science and Technology, the Agno River Basic Flood Forecasting and Warning Center, the Agno Flood Control System-Department of Public Works and Highways and the National Power Corp.