Even before the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in 1991, the municipality
of Guagua has been experiencing floods due to its low elevation
and silted waterways. However, the situation worsened with
the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo, which caused dikes to collapse,
increasing the occurrences of flash floods. Excessive siltation
brought about by the eruption further clogged the waterways,
preventing adequate water supply from reaching the municipality.
The municipal disaster management program focuses
on providing effective and efficient communication and warning,
rescue, evacuation and assistance operations. It provides
appropriate engineering intervention and infrastructure
infusion like building secondary dikes, pilot channels and
sandbagging. At the same time, there are continuous systematic
risk monitoring and risk management programs in place.
Through the formation of the Barangay Information
Organizing and Network Cadres (BIONIC), the community is
given an opportunity to participate in the municipality’s
disaster management efforts in facilitating information
dissemination, networking and organization. The Wawa Radio
Communications Network (WARCON), which acts as a centralized
communication system, was established in strategic locations
of the dike system and waterways. In addition to this, the
Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) takes care of the
rescue, evacuation and assistance operations. Both groups
are composed of volunteers coming from the barangays, people’s
groups and non-governmental organizations.
The success of the disaster management program is
evidenced by the dramatic decrease of projected losses of
the 1995 Bacolor Disaster. From a projected Php 125 million
worth of losses, the actual damages caused by the disaster
only amounted to Php 31 million. Through the program, an
estimated Php 8.5 billion worth of properties and produce
have been saved. It has benefited approximately 77,000 individuals
out of the municipality’s total population of 95,363,
with 22 out of the 31 barangays under the constant threat
of flooding. As part of its measures for continuous improvement,
the program also adopted a multi-hazard perspective to encompass
other possible disaster situations like fires, earthquakes,
stampedes, riots, etc. The program has maintained the required
expertise for handling various disasters by conducting continuous
drills and simulation activities.
