STA. BARBARA, Pangasinan - In 2016, the Philippines ranked 3rd in the 2016 World Risk Index of the most disaster-prone countries in the world according to the United Nations Population Fund. It experienced almost all forms of natural disasters and calamities – typhoons, flood, earthquakes, fires, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis.

Preparation with proper training is needed in order to cope up with disasters. Government agencies and councils that cover different areas in the country like the Pangasinan Disaster-Risk Reduction Management Office (PDRRMO) raise awareness on how to be prepared when disaster comes. They conduct seminars and hands-on trainings to show what people should do in real-life situations.

ATI-RTC 1 staff was privileged to learn essential practices and know the importance of disaster preparedness. Last August 13-14, ATI-RTC 1 in partnership with PDRRMO, conducted Training on Community-Based Disaster Risk Reduction and Management to build the employees’ capability on mitigating disaster risk, preparing for disaster, responding to emergency situations and ensuring continuity of government services during crisis.

In this training, Mr. Argie B. Gattoc, representative from PDRRMO served as the resource speaker and shared his knowledge about preparedness, prevention and mitigation for each hazard and disaster response mechanisms, and preparations for rehabilitation and recovery. Moreover, he also defined important terms in disaster management so participants would have better understanding of warning signals and alerts.

ATI-RTC I Center Director, Dr. Rogelio Evangelista, encouraged ATI-RTC 1 staff not just to learn the preliminaries of disaster management for a requirement, but to be well-prepared when disaster comes as well.

It is important to be equipped with proper knowledge and skills in facing circumstances we cannot avoid. As the saying goes, “ligtas ang may alam.”