ILOILO City – Western Visayas has been designated as one of the country’s first emergency response regions that will immediately deploy rescue teams to Metro Manila should the long-feared “Big One” earthquake strike the National Capital Region, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) announced on Tuesday.
The designation places Region 6 at the forefront of the national disaster response plan, with rescue personnel assigned to reinforce emergency operations in Marikina City and Pasig City — two areas projected to sustain severe impacts during a major earthquake along the West Valley Fault.
Atty. Melissa Banias, officer-in-charge of the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM) Division and Operations Section of OCD Region 6, said the Western Visayas is already preparing for the critical role.
To further strengthen disaster readiness, OCD-6 will conduct the Regional Rescuelympics 2026 from July 25 to 29 at the Binirayan Sports Complex in San Jose, Antique, bringing together Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Councils (LDRRMCs) from across Western Visayas in realistic emergency response simulations.
Banias emphasized that the activity is not merely a competition but a comprehensive evaluation of the operational readiness of rescue teams that could be deployed during major disasters.
“Our goal for the Rescuelympics is to build camaraderie while also assessing the capabilities of our provinces. It allows us to showcase their skills, test their endurance, and determine whether their training meets national standards,” she said.
The five-day event will feature rescue simulations and emergency response exercises designed to measure teamwork, endurance, technical competence and coordination among local responders in preparation for large-scale emergencies.
Banias said Western Visayas remains generally prepared to respond to major disasters, citing mandatory disaster preparedness funding, continuous capacity-building efforts and sustained training programs being undertaken by local government units throughout the region.
“Every local government has allocated at least five percent of its budget for disaster preparedness, and they continue to conduct training and develop programs to improve response capabilities. Generally, we can say the region is prepared, although the real test will come when an actual disaster occurs,” she said.
She stressed that regular drills and simulations remain vital to ensuring responders can effectively save lives when calamity strikes.
“We can positively say that Western Visayas is on the right track. Based on our overall assessment, the region is prepared, and we will continue strengthening our capabilities because when lives are on the line, we must be ready to respond,” Banias said./PN
