CALAMBA CITY (PIA) – Regional disaster officials in Region IV-A on Thursday, July 6 have created special task forces that will address hazards specific to the Calabarzon region.
This follows the Office of Civil Defense Memorandum 484 requiring the creation of task forces to address complex hazards, consistent with the whole of government approach of the national government.
As the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC) chair, the OCD will lead all 11 task forces while another government agency with direct jurisdiction over a specific hazard will act as the co-chair.
Based on RDRRMC Memorandum No. 92, the hazards include typhoons; fire incidents; earthquake; emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases; pest and diseases for crops and livestock; armed conflict; air asset crash; and chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and high yield explosives.
The Calabarzon disaster risk council creates special task forces to address complex hazards like the Taal Volcano eruption. The council recently inspected the Taal Volcano Island amid reported human activities around the lake. File photo by Mark Bryan I. Lito
Each task force will oversee the implementation of RDRRMC activities, particularly on disaster preparedness and response and ensure that the response clusters are organized and operationalized from the pre-impact, impact, until post-impact phases.
The council also formed task forces that will focus on the Taal Volcano and maritime incidents such as oil spills and sunken vessels.
OCD Calabarzon OIC and council chair, Reyan Derrick Marquez said the task forces were created based on the region’s risk profile.
“It is envisioned that we will include local government units, until the level of the cities and the municipalities. We will ensure that the mechanisms of the RDRRMC are operationalized in the phases of disaster response,” Marquez added.
Meanwhile, Marquez clarified that the newly created regional task force does not change the composition, roles and responsibilities of the Calabarzon RDRRMC.
Located in the south-western part of Luzon, the Calabarzon region consists of various land forms, including coastal areas and mostly upland interior areas with plains, mountains, and the Taal volcano. Surrounded by the Philippine Sea in the east, the Verde Island Passage in the South and Luzon Sea on the west, the region is vulnerable to natural calamities such as typhoons and volcanic eruption, as well as man-made disasters such as oil spills. (PB)
