ANGARA RENEWS CALL FOR EMERGENCY TRAINING IN PHL

Senator Edgardo J. Angara reiterated his call for a nationwide disaster preparedness campaign after two successive earthquakes hit the Philippines on Monday afternoon.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) recorded the first earthquake at 4:26 in the afternoon, located 117km Northeast of Laoag City in Ilocos. The 6.4 quake was felt throughout Luzon.

According to Phivolcs, this quake was generated by the Manila trench, which is capable of triggering up to 8.2 magnitude tremors .

Three hours later, a 4.7 quake shook Camarines Sur.

"Monday's earthquakes felt in Luzon and Visayas should serve as a wake-up call for all of us. We were lucky that there was no recorded damage in the cities, especially those which haven't been checked yet by DPWH," said Angara.

The massive quake that hit Japan nearly two weeks ago had prompted the Department of Public Works and Highways to undergo inspection and retrofitting of structures in Metro Manila to be able to withstand a stronger earthquake.

"These events should be seen as tangible proof of just how prone we are to earthquakes and other natural disasters," he said.

Angara had been urging both private and private sectors to undergo disaster preparedness measures as early as March last year.

"This past week, we've seen the authorities rushing to undergo disaster response training and our evaluating the safety of our buildings and bridges. But what we lack is information for the ordinary person. I believe we must now focus on educating the general public on the dangers that we face as well as what to do in emergency situations," he said.