The Muntinlupa City government will sign agreements with funeral parlors in preparation for the “Big One” or a massive earthquake that is projected to hit the country anytime.
According to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), the “Big One” refers to a large earthquake from “any active faults that have not generated any historical surface-rupturing events.”
The Muntinlupa City government will enter into agreements with four funeral parlors in preparation for the "Big One." (Screenshots from Google Maps)
The “Big One,” it said, “can significantly affect the region and surrounding areas in the Philippines.”
In four resolutions, the Muntinlupa City Council authorized Mayor Ruffy Biazon to enter into a memorandum of agreement with four funeral parlors to prepare for the recovery, processing, and disposal of mass casualties in the event of a major earthquake or other natural disasters.
"Preparation is key when dealing with natural disasters. The immediate processing of mass casualties is essential to ensure the safety of survivors as well as to facilitate the grieving process," said Biazon.
The City Council approved Resolutions 217 to 220 allowing the mayor to sign agreements with Lim De Mesa Funeral Parlor in Barangay Putatan, Lim De Mesa in Barangay Bayanan, King Harold Funeral Parlor in Barangay Bayanan, and Eastern Funeral Services in in Barangay Alabang.
According to the resolutions, “the Philippines belongs to the Pacific Ring of Fire and is vulnerable to typhoons and earthquakes. National and local governments have long been advised to prepare for the ‘Big One,’ an earthquake of magnitude emanating from active faults that have not generated any historical surface-rupturing events which can significantly affect the region and surrounding areas in the Philippines.”
Muntinlupa “is one of the local government units transected by the west valley fault and is prone to massive destruction to properties and deaths when the Big One occur. Preparations not only in recovery and proper disposal of cadaver is a must as mishandling of dead persons will pose another health hazard when not properly planned.”
The funeral parlors have expressed that they “will voluntarily and out of benevolence. assist in the collection, preservation, storage and disposal of cadaver as a result of mass fatalities arising from disasters and calamities at no cost to the CGM [City Government of Muntinlupa].”