ILOILO CITY—The provincial government of Iloilo has opened its Civil Defense Operations Center (CDOC) at the Iloilo Provincial Capitol.
This, after Governor Arthur Defensor Jr. decided to convert the Governor’s Boardroom into a 24/7 operations center to beef up the provincial government’s response mechanisms to disasters and emergencies.
“I wanted it directly besides my office so I can monitor and supervise the operation,” Defensor said.
The CDOC has radio communication equipment and TV monitors that will be used to monitor weather patterns from state weather bureau Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) such as typhoon movement or rainfall volume.
The CDOC is going to be manned by personnel from different departments including those from the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office, Provincial Agriculture Office, Provincial Engineering Office, and Provincial Health Office.
This will be formalized with the creation of an Emergency Response Team (ERT) which will be on 24/7 operation.
Defensor said the CDOC has communication linkages with the local government units (LGUs) of the 42 towns and component city of Passi to be able to have timely reports from the ground.