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joshsaygo-blog · 5 years ago

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DRRM Kwentuhan and Community walk

AMPID I---one of the baranggays in San Mateo, Rizal, and is considered as the major commercial location of the town due to the wide area of its vicinity and having the highest number of populations among all the baranggays in San Mateo--having 128,840 number of people as of 2015. Because of that, issues regarding disasters and hazards are critical in such a highly populated place. Module 3 tasked me to ask several questions regarding the Disaster Risk and Reduction Management of the government of Ampid I and to answer all of those, I went to the baranggay hall and met Hector Reyes, the current baranggay captain, to ask him everything about the DRRM of his area of governance.

HAZARD IDENTIFICATION. Mr. Hector Reyes narrated the biggest calamity that the baranggay faced so far. Typhoon Ondoy in 20019 was for him was the scariest and the highest disaster that hit Ampid I. This disaster greatly affects people and their houses more than their livelihood since Ampid I is not an agricultural place, and most opportunities come from working in offices and such environment. The flood was beyond an average man’s height, a lot of people evacuated to the multi-purpose covered court near the baranggay during the continuous raining, and several people died. He was not elected as Baranggay Captain yet during that time, but he was in the baranggay hall when the flooding happened. He said that after the rainfall, the flood remained until midnight, which right after, his team conducted a search and rescue operation. The next morning, he saw how thick the muds were in Ampid I and the things washed away being either on the streets or the highway. There was not a single household that was not affected by the typhoon and the loss of valuable things is huge. Luckily, a lot of generous charities such as Sagip Kapamilya offered relief goods to the residents of Ampid I.

Reyes said that such typhoons are known through telecasts and radio announcements, but they have an internal system for detection and prediction of weather that works for LGUs. He said that these disasters are not common at all in San Mateo, and the flooding that Ondoy brought is something that was not expected at all by the officials.

VULNERABILITY, ELEMENTS and the PEOPLE AT RISK. The area that is the most prone and at risk to disasters like Ondoy in the low-lying areas of Ampid I, especially the part near the river of Ampid I that connects to Marikina river, according to Mr. Reyes. He also said that the people that are most likely to be affected are those who reside near the said river since they would be the first ones to be affected when it overflows. And because of that, they designated areas where those residents can go to whenever threats regarding the river rise; One is the Multi-purpose covered court near the baranggay.

CAPACITY AND DISASTER MANAGEMENT ASSESSMENT. Mr. Reyes showed me pictures of boats, life-preservers, tents, and generators which the baranggay has in stock in case of disasters. He also said that there are also trained rescuers that are part of the DRRM team of the baranggay. Reyes is also in charge of leading the DRRM teams before, during, and after disasters, and for that, he also has the same knowledge as his team members and rescuers.

COMMUNITY WALK

HAZARDOUS PLACE. Among the hazardous places found in Ampid I, are creeks and the area near the river in Ampid bridge. The residents living near these areas are prone to hazards that involve creeks and rivers such as landslide, overflowing of water that results in flooding, and other dangers of residing beside the said places.

SAFEST PLACE/S. Attached to this is the photo of the baranggay multi-purpose covered court which is located near the baranggay hall. Mr. Reyes said that this covered court serves a lot of purpose including evacuation, basketball leagues, sports events, Zumba, and other activities that require a spacious location.

BEST PRACTICES. Our baranggay conducts cleaning drive every month which targets different communities in Ampid I. These clean-up drives invite volunteers to help in managing wastes found in a different community. Attach to this are photos of some of their monthly clean-up drives courtesy of the facebook page of Ampid I. Another is that the baranggay also conducts fire and earthquake drills every year according to Mr. Reyes.

During the entire time of this kwentuhan and community walk, I realized a lot of things that our Local government and our national government have in common. One is that they both (thankfully) invest in the equipment needed in emergencies. Two is that both prepare for disaster the same way; one cannot just simply predict a disaster without the help of science and communication to different sectors for coordination of acts. Lastly, they are both making efforts into securing our lives from disasters. We do not owe them anything since such preparation and actions are just part of their jobs, but we are thankful for it. Another thing that I realized is how important DRRM for every government. Great damages can be reduced with proper planning, execution, and evaluation of every plan that they propose, and of course, with us, their citizens, in full cooperation as well,

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