CATARMAN, Northern Samar, July 23 (PIA) — The province of Northern Samar is the host of the five-day Regional Rescue Jamboree 2019 being held at the University of Eastern Philippines (UEP) grounds here from July 22-26, 2019.
“Other than strengthening camaraderie and providing avenue for sharing of expertise, the event is primarily aimed at enhancing the disaster preparedness and response skills of the Disaster Response Teams of various local government units for effective and efficient management of emergency operations,” said Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Assistant Regional Director Rey Gozon.
The event started with a Holy Mass, then a short opening program followed by a motorcade.
Sessions kick-started with the introduction to Incident Command System and break-out sessions of various specialties, capacitation and mastery of skills and approaches on rescue, among others.
In his message, the newly installed Governor Edwin Ong expressed optimism that the participants will maximize the opportunity in sharing best practices and further enhance their knowledge in disaster response operation.
“The hosting of the jamboree is part of the resiliency initiatives of the provincial government as highlighted in the 2019-2020 Development Agenda Padayon nga Kauswagan,” he said.
Around 30 accredited disaster emergency response teams and communication groups attended coming from as far as Southern Leyte.
They heeded the call of the OCD as the initiator of the event and the invitation of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) lead by PDRRM Officer Rei Echano who said that the event is also in line with the observance of the National Disaster Resilience Month this July.
Various national and local government agencies and non-government organizations supported and collaborated to make the event a success.
The Northern Samar Police Provincial Office team, Armed Forces of the Philippines and UEP University Security Group took charge of the security needs of the area and the participants. ( Ailene N. Diaz /PIA-Northern Samar)
