MODULE 3: DISASTER RISK REDUCTION AND MANAGEMENT
19 December - I decided to pay a visit in our barangay hall in San Pedro City in order to have a sit-down interview with our barangay kagawad Jairus Ubana.
The good thing about here is that he is also my co-member in a church-based organization called Joseph Marello Youth wherein I am given the chance to interact with him whenever possible.
San Pedro City Municipal Hall
As I was conversing with him, he emphasized series of hazards or calamities that our barangay faces every now and then. These include natural calamities like typhoon and flooding. Such disastrous events occur every month or once in three months depending on the weather condition.
The most devastated area as per their barangay reports will be Console 12 and a reason for this is the mere fact that they are a low-lying area which makes them prone to flooding whenever the city is struck by a typhoon. Because of these, its residents suffer weeks or even a month of continuous rehabilitation to recover from their losses brought by the calamity. A lot of families have their houses torn down by typhoons as well as an evident decrease in the economic status of the community is observed.
Natural disasters – such as hurricanes, cyclones, earthquakes, mudslides, floods, wildfires, volcanic eruptions and weather events like extreme droughts and monsoons – are likely increasing in frequency due to climate change. These events bring with them a host of issues, including humanitarian, public health, environmental and infrastructural problems.
Jairus Ubana along with his fellow government officials in their annual school supplies distribution in public schools in Barangay San Vicente.
The barangay officials are also focusing on disaster preparedness as they deem it to be very important in order to ensure zero casualties and to prevent further damage on personal and communal properties. Different seminars on disaster risk reduction management are being held in various villages in our barangay to expound the knowledge of its residents on precautionary measures and immediate preparations to assure the safety of everyone in the household.
Besides the seminars, they also conduct first-aid training especially for the teenagers and potential volunteers in case calamities occur.
First-aid training is annually being held to teach people basic life support and ways on how to respond in different situations in need of immediate care. I myself is one of its participants and true enough, I wasn’t just able to learn the whole process but also enjoy every second of it,
Here is a picture of one of the village courts in the barangay and it also served as an evacuation place before whenever earthquakes occurred in the place.
Its best practices certainly include its monthly clean-up drive to prevent clogging of waterways which is also a leading cause of extreme flooding in the area. It also implements a proper waste segregation to educate people to segregate their trash properly. All recyclable materials are used to build Christmas decors that are placed in the barangay or the municipal hall.
During the process of interview and community walk, a lot of realizations came through my mind. We can never stop calamities from happening, what we are capable of is controlling how these disasters affect us. It’s better to prevent than undergo a long road of recovery and rehabilitation. Disaster Risk Management is not really something that is given full attention of by our national government so it’s best to train and equip ourselves with enough knowledge and skills to respond whenever these events occur.