Capitol sets earthquake drill on Thursday

By Ma.Victoria S. Defensor  

In line with the conduct of nationwide earthquake safety drill for public buildings, the Iloilo Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council will also conduct the same on Thursday (July28) with the Capitol employees.  

Mr. Jerry Bionat, Officer-in-Charge of the Office of the Community Affairs and deputized Civil Defense Coordinator of the Province of Iloilo, said the drill will be conducted to ensure that Capitol employees will not panic in the event of an earthquake.  

Bionat also said the PDCC has already conducted orientation prior to the conduct of earthquake drill which was attended by representatives of every office. During the orientation, every representative was already informed of the evacuation routes and the assigned evacuation area where employees should go during an earthquake.  

Each representative was also asked to draw a floor plan of the office (tables, cabinets, etc); identify the safe spots in the office and identify the danger zones. The employee whose table is situated nearest the door will be in-charge of making sure the door is open during the shaking and stay there, with the door jambs serving as protection.  

Bionat said the parking lot in front of the Capitol has been designated as the area of temporary refuge. Each office has also named their respective “Office Disaster Commander” to check and make sure all the employees are accounted for.  

Bionat said an evaluation of the drill will also be conducted to identify problems encountered and how this can be corrected in future drills. (Capitol News)