The Iloilo City government recently donated a 5,000-square meter plot of land to the Office of the Civil Defense in the Jaro district’s Barangay Tacas for the purpose of setting up a regional evacuation center.
The city department will also establish a depot on the land.
“We discussed the need to fast-track the construction of [an] evacuation center,” explained Iloilo City Mayor Jerry P. Treñas. “If there are available funds, it will start by the end of the year or early next year.”
“We have to prepare for disasters,” he added.
According to a release from the city government, the construction of such a facility is mandated by RA 10121, or the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010.
Once completed, the center will include an infirmary, pharmacy, toilets, bathrooms, laundry and drying facilities, generator, garbage disposal, storage room, among other amenities.
Treñas said he had previously met with Department of National Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana regarding the project.
The cabinet official was in the province earlier this month for the turnover of a P32 million regional evacuation center in Zarraga.
At the time, Lorenzana cited a 2017 Harvard University study that found the Western Visayas to be the most disaster-resilient region of the country.
“Other region can learn [the] best practices of the Western Visayas,” he pointed out./WDJ