MANILA – For the first time, the metro-wide earthquake drill will be held for four days and will include other scenarios, with some areas focusing on fire suppression activities, apparently an offshoot of the deadly fire that killed 37 hotel guests and employees recently.
Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Danny Lim said the agency is gearing for the third drill on July 14 to 18 in an effort to raise disaster preparedness amid fears of the “Big One.”
It is the first time, he noted, that the drill will be held for four days. It will cover nearby provinces like Bulacan, Rizal, Cavite, and Laguna.
Based on the map of the Valley Fault System released by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), the West Valley Fault also transects portions of the four provinces.
“We will also inject other scenarios,” Lim said citing the June 2 tragedy at Resorts World Manila where a lone gunman, a gambling addict, torched tables and slot machines at the casino area. The 37 people who died succumbed mostly to smoke inhalation. Lone gunman Jessie Carlos also shot and set himself on fire.
This year’s drills aim to test the preparedness of the public when it comes to safety, dealing with a range of possible life-and-death scenarios.
The head of the agency’s Metro Manila Crisis Monitoring and Management Center (MMCMMC), Ramon Santiago, said the different scenarios for the drill start at 4pm July 14 to coincide with the rush hour in Metro Manila.
He unveiled the proposed drill timeline:
• July 14 – Start of Drill (West Valley Fault moves generating a 7.2 magnitude earthquake at 4:00 p.m.)
– Individual Self-Protection
– Total power failure test (10 minutes)
– Emergency response test (until July 16)
• July 15 – Early Recovery plans (until July 17)
• July 18 – Drill ends, Drill evaluation and critiques
The MMDA expects the public to do the “duck, cover and hold” for earthquakes, but also wants to mobillize preparedness for critical scenarios, such as fire, collapsed bridges and buildings, and derailment of trains. These will also be simulated to test the reaction and response time and skills of rescue teams.
Metro Manila is being divided into quadrants to play out the various scenarios. At the North quadrant – Quezon City, San Juan City, Mandaluyong City, Valenzuela City, and Caloocan – the scenarios include evacuation and medical treatment at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center in Quezon City and fire suppression operations at the Quezon Memorial Circle.
At the South quadrant – Makati, Pateros, Pasay, Taguig, Parañaque, Las Piñas, and Muntinlupa – focus is on evacuation, debris clearing operations, and handling the collapse of the Guadalupe Bridge.
The West quadrant – Manila, Navotas, and Malabon – there will be simulated scenarios of fire suppression.
For the East quadrant of Marikina and Pasig, teams will focus on restoring busted water pipes and transporting relief goods.
Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City will serve as the headquarters of MMDA if the agency’s main office in Makati collapses.
