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Thursday, March 28, 2024

Military reservists promote disaster preparedness

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WITH enlisted men occupied in intensified operations against terrorism and illegal drugs, the Armed Forces of the Philippines will have to rely more on its reserve force for humanitarian assistance and disaster response operations, AFP Chief of Staff Gen. Ricardo Visaya said.

In a statement for the Joint Capability Demonstration on Saturday, Visaya warned of the continuing threat of disasters and the need for reservists and local governments to be prepared.

“Our reserve force will play a greater role in the years to come and it is good to know that the AFP Reserve Command recognizes this and has sought steps to prepare itself for joint HADR operations,” Visaya said.

In line with the observance of the National Disasters Preparedness Month, the AFP Reserve Command (Afrescom) and the City Government of Taguig led the demonstration to highlight the nationwide awareness campaign against disasters and measure the status of their preparations.

They simulated with partner agencies several scenarios caused by a 7.2-magnitude earthquake generated by the West Valley Fault, which is expected to devastate the greater Manila area in the near future.

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“The conduct was meant to measure preparedness, readiness, and interoperability of Reserve units side by side with our partner agencies,” said BGen Leoncio Cirunay Jr., commander of Afrescom.

“This way, we can determine how far we’ve come in terms of capability and what others we need to improve on in saving lives and mitigating the effects of disasters in the shortest timeframe,” he added.

The scenarios included high casualty multiple vehicle collision, explosion, collapsed building rescue, high-angle rescue, and airlift evacuation that tested the capabilities of participating responders from crowd control to high altitude urban maneuvers.

The responders were from the AFP Joint Task Force-National Capital Region, Office of Civil Defense, Department of Interior and Local Government, Taguig City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, Philippine National Police, Bureau of Fire Protection, University of Perpetual Help, the 1st Technical and Administrative Service of Afrescom, and Major Service Reserve Commands.

“The AFP will have its hands full in the performance of its mandate but remains focused and unwavering in fulfilling them all for the Filipino,” Visaya added.

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