‘Include PWDs in disaster plan’

The Cebu provincial government is urging all 51 local government units to come up with a complete list of persons with disabilities (PWDs) for their inclusion in the disaster risk reduction and management plans.

This is part of keeping the province's policy of “zero casualty” in times of calamities.

There are at least 41,000 PWDs enlisted in the province, according to the Provincial Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) head Baltazar Tribunalo Jr.

But he said the figure is still far from complete.

PDRRMO and the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office (PSWDO) target to accomplish at least 80 percent of the PWD list before the year ends as part of the province's DisabilityInclusive Disaster Risk Reduction (DiDRR) program.

Tribunalo said they will also ask the puroks, barangays, disaster offices, and PWD organizations to submit their list of PWDs, as well as their numbers and profiles.

“These pieces of information are needed in assisting them and responding to them during disasters and emergencies,” he said.

Tribunalo,

the resource speaker during the 2nd DiDRR Summit last Friday, presented his office's disaster programs for PWDs.

The summit was attended by over 100 people from city and town disaster offices, academe, national line agencies, civil society groups, and memberorganizations of the DiRR network.

In his talk, he pointed out that modern equipment and disaster plans could be for naught if LGUs would fail to respond to PWDs during emergencies.

“The loud siren of the early warning system will be useless if one can't hear. If we want to increase capacity-building and decrease vulnerability, it's important that we will include PWs in our disaster programs,” he said.

The conduct of disaster awareness advocacy through road shows and forums and the development of DiDRR network are among the key programs of the PDRRMO.

“Dili lang ta kutob sa pagmugna og polisiya. Duna tay programa, dunay tawo, ug dunay kwarta,” he said.

PDRRMO has allocated P2.1 million for next year's DiRR programs.

Because of its efforts in advancing DiDRR programs, Tribunalo said the province was chosen as host of the National DiDRR Convention slated from October 11 to 13.

Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management is one of the current administration's 6 Key Development Agenda.

Cebu province was hit by devastating calamities in 2013, including the 7.2-magnitude earthquake and the super typhoon Yolanda.