Bulacan not ready for big disasters, governor admits

MALOLOS CITY, Philippines – Bulacan Gov. Joselito Mendoza admitted yesterday that the province is unprepared for major disasters, as local officials searched for equipment to rescue residents affected by heavy floods brought by tropical storm “Ondoy.”

This came more than a month after the province launched Rescue 566, which was touted as Bulacan’s version of Rescue 911 of the United States, and two days after a provincial disaster official said they were ready to address major calamities.

“Hindi tayo handa sa ganito kalaking kalamidad (We are not ready for a disaster of this magnitude),” Mendoza said during a briefing of the Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council here yesterday.

“Hindi natin inaasahan ang dami ng ulan na bumuhos (We didn’t expect such huge volume of rainfall),” he said, citing the number of lives lost in flash floods in Marilao and Bocaue towns.

Citing reports from volunteer rescue groups and the Rescue 566, which was launched last Aug. 15, Mendoza stressed the need for more equipment like rubber boats, lamenting that Rescue 566 just has one rubber boat while Marilao and Bocaue have one and two, respectively.

More rubber boats

“Nakita na natin ngayon ang weakness natin. Tubig ang weakness natin, kaya kailangan natin ng dagdag na rubber boats (Now we see our weakness – water – thus we need more rubber boats),” he said.

Asked how the disaster response capability of the province could be improved, Mendoza told The STAR that he would advise local officials to earmark funds for the acquisition of more equipment like rubber boats in the future.

“(It’s) budget preparation season (again now), and I will advise local mayors to set aside, if not prepare funds needed for disaster preparedness,” he said.

Provincial administrator Perlita Mendoza echoed the need for more rubber boats, saying the province’s actual disaster response capability was tested by Ondoy that left at least 22 Bulacan towns and cities submerged.

“It’s an eye-opener for us kasi kapag ganito kalaki ang scale ng disaster, we will need more equipment and personnel,” she said.

Earlier, the provincial government said it was ready to address disasters as it launched Rescue 566.

In an interview last Friday, Felicisima Mungcal, head of the Provincial Disaster Management Office, declared Bulacan’s readiness to address calamities in terms of equipment and personnel.

Aside from the equipment and dedicated personnel of Rescue 566, Mungcal said there are at least 10 volunteer rescue groups in the province.

“We are ready to address disasters, but no one can predict when disasters will come, kaya mas mabuti handa lahat (it’s better that everyone is prepared),” she said.

This, as Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) director Renato Solidum urged Bulacan officials last year to prepare for the worse, as he confirmed that the main dike of the 41-year-old Angat Dam is sitting near the Marikina fault line.

Disaster mitigation program

Mungcal said the provincial government has an ongoing disaster mitigation program that includes early warning, response and evacuation systems in coordination with local government units and national government agencies.

Mungcal said they have enough equipment, skilled manpower and medical facilities to cope with contingencies.

She allayed fears of a repeat of the disaster that befell Bulacan on Oct. 27, 1978 that left several Bulakenyos dead and multimillion-peso worth of properties and crops ravaged.

The National Power Corp. had described the disaster as an “extraordinary flood,” as it stemmed from heavy rains dumped by typhoon “Kading” that forced the state-run power firm to release water from Angat Dam.

However, the floodgates were opened too wide, causing floodwaters to instantly rise and inundate large portions of Bulacan and Pampanga for nearly a month.

As this developed, Bulakenyos who experienced the disastrous 1978 flood said Bulacan is not ready to cope with another disaster of such a scale.

“Dapat kumilos sila ngayon (They should act now),” said Nemecio Sabino of Hagonoy town, which was underwater for more than a month in 1978.

Hagonoy Vice Mayor Elmer Santos and board member Patrocinio Laderas echoed Sabino’s statement.

“In case of a disastrous flood, no way can we prevent it. The 1978 disaster was man-made,” Laderas said. “Earthquakes can never be predicted. If Angat Dam lies within the fault line, it’s everybody’s concern.”

For her part, Mara Bautista of the Bulacan Chamber of Commerce and Industry said, “Mayaman tayo sa (We are rich in) human resources equipped with the strongest faith. But for materials, money and machines, we have always been impoverished. Let’s continue to pray that the Lord continue to spare us from disasters.”