Press Release
October 29, 2009

ANGARA BATS FOR CREATION OF DISASTER MGT CENTER IN RP

With another storm entering the Philippine area of responsibility and possibly hitting Aurora Province and nearby Northern Luzon provinces, Senator Edgardo J. Angara together with the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAG-ASA) are pushing for the creation of a Disaster Management Training Center (DMTC).

"What we ought to learn from the Ondoy and Pepeng experience is that we need to put in place a better disaster prediction and response system," said Angara who concurrently chairs COMSTE and the Senate Committee on Science and Technology.

The proposed disaster management training center will assist national agencies to lead recovery and rehabilitation in the wake of calamities by developing plans and programs aimed at reducing social, environmental and institutional vulnerabilities.

PAGASA reported that by evening of Thursday, the new storm tagged Santi will be 710 km east of Casiguran and by Friday evening, it is expected to be at 250 km.

Angara has sought the assistance of Hyogo Prefecture that dealt with the Great Hanshin Awaji earthquake for the establishment of said disaster management training center in Aurora, which is prone to natural disasters.

The Aurora DMTC will operate as a model in capacity building and institutional development of local officials, policy makers, professionals and academic organizations and individuals in a multidisciplinary approach to Disaster Risk Management (DRM).

"Through this center, we can better protect lives and properties from future disasters by enhancing and developing human, technical, and institutional capacity through training and staff development of the wide range of stakeholders and actors working on disaster risk reduction," said Angara.

News Latest News Feed