Buddy system encouraged during disaster
AS PART of its awareness and readiness campaign in times of disasters, the Parents Teachers Association of the Special Education Baguio institution have agreed to practice the buddy-buddy system amongst the students of the said learning institution.
During the recent 3rd Quarter National Simultaneous Earthquake Drill in the city, students from the SPED Center exercised the buddy-buddy system with the goal of institutionalizing this practice.
SPED officials explained selected students act as team leaders and are tasked to guide their co-students in going to the designated evacuation center, aside from conduct of physical accounting of their classmates.
The learning institution conducts their own earthquake drill at least every two months, aside from initiatives by the teachers in their classrooms.
All of the students at the SPED Center are considered as children with special needs, aside from those identified as gifted and talented children.
Based on the evaluation conducted by the assigned umpires by the Office of the Civil Defense, it noted positive reviews, particu-
larly in the treatment of children with special needs.
OCD Cordillera Information Officer Ivy Carasi said the practice of the buddy-buddy system by SPED students is a good practice since it would be them who can immediately evacuate their classmates particularly those considered as children with special needs.
“The next thing to be done by the officials not only of SPED but other learning institutions in the city is to look for an alternative evacuation center which maybe appropriate to the number of individuals in the school, which is easily accessible for their evacuation in times of disasters,” Carasi added.
Based on the ideal set-up for an evacuation center, the size of an evacuation center should be twice the size of the building in terms of an open space to accommodate its immediate evacuees.