SAN FERNANDO CITY, La Union—The provincial government of La Union, headed by Gov. Francisco Emmanuel “Pacoy” Ortega III, has signed a memorandum of agreement with the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. and Smart Communications officially launching the Provincial Incidence Response Management 911 emergency hotline.
“We will establish the 911 emergency hotline in La Union in partnership with DILG and PLDT. We will set up a command center at the capitol to receive calls, and from there we will immediately send responders to emergencies,” Ortega said.
Ortega said PLDT will orient those who would be assigned as operators of the command center particularly those who will be answering calls. The center will be under the supervision of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office.
“Eventually, when we already have trained personnel [of command center and operators], we will cascade this down to the municipalities and the barangays. The public will be informed properly about the system,” Ortega said.
