THE THREAT of a major earthquake is not a matter of if — but when. In Western Visayas, where the Second Quarter Nationwide Simultaneous Earthquake Drill (NSED) is being observed today, we must ask: Are our schools, government offices, homes, and business establishments, among others, truly ready for the real thing?
This question demands more than a ceremonial answer. While NSED drills like the one to be conducted today at Tigbauan National High School and the Iloilo Provincial Capitol are commendable, they are merely one piece of a much larger puzzle. Preparedness is not just about practicing the “Duck, Cover, and Hold” protocol — it is also about ensuring that the structures we occupy during our most vulnerable hours are capable of withstanding a major seismic event.
Many of our public schools and government buildings in Iloilo and the rest of Western Visayas are decades old, built long before modern structural codes were introduced or enforced. In numerous municipalities, classrooms are cramped, aging, and visibly cracked; government offices still operate in buildings that have never undergone structural integrity assessments. If a high-magnitude earthquake strikes, drills will be of little use if the buildings themselves collapse.
The Department of Education and the Department of Public Works and Highways, along with local government units, must accelerate the structural audit of all public school buildings in Region 6. This is not a matter of bureaucratic compliance but a matter of life and death. Any school found to be structurally compromised must be prioritized for retrofitting or, if necessary, condemned and replaced.
The same urgency applies to city and municipal halls, capitol buildings, and other key government facilities. These are supposed to be command centers in times of disaster — not scenes of tragedy.
Regular hazard mapping, retrofitting programs, and clear evacuation planning must be institutionalized and budgeted for annually, not as afterthoughts but as imperatives.
The participation of Ilonggos in earthquake drills is a strong sign of a willing and safety-conscious citizenry. But government must match that enthusiasm with real, structural action. Safety begins not with slogans or simulations — but with sound, reinforced foundations.
