ANTIQUE — The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO), in partnership with the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Region 6, successfully conducted the 4th Quarter Nationwide Simultaneous Earthquake Drill (NSED) 2025 at exactly 9 a.m. on November 24 in Barangay Poblacion, Anini-y.
The activity aimed to strengthen the preparedness of local government employees, students, and coastal communities in responding to possible earthquakes and tsunami hazards.
The drill began with the ceremonial button-pressing, followed by the sounding of the siren to mark the start of the earthquake and tsunami simulation. As the alarm blared, children, students, and government workers immediately performed the “duck, cover, and hold” maneuver before evacuating to higher ground and moving toward designated evacuation sites.
The Municipal Emergency Operations Center (EOC) was placed under red alert status, while an Incident Command Post (ICP), response clusters, Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDANA) team, and other Incident Command System (ICS) facilities — including a staging area and an advanced medical post — were swiftly activated.
The Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office (MSWDO) also initiated Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM) operations to manage evacuees, distribute relief assistance, and ensure their safety and welfare.
Meanwhile, the RDANA team conducted a rapid assessment of the simulated impacts on population, infrastructure, and lifelines. Search, Rescue, and Retrieval (SRR) teams were deployed to coastal areas to validate reports of injuries or casualties and to carry out retrieval operations following the simulated tsunami effect.
The drill concluded with the Operations Center declaring all areas cleared and safe.
Gov. Paolo Javier praised the unified efforts of responders and community members, saying, “My deepest appreciation to the PDRRMO, OCD-6, our responders, and the people of Anini-y for making this drill a success. Every effort you put in today strengthens our resilience as a province.”
PDRRM Officer Broderick Train also commended participating agencies.
“Kung ako maglantaw, even though overwhelming ang scenario, nakaya man kang aton nga LGU Anini-y with the support of other partner agencies,” he said.
Community member Lee Bungay of Barangay Lisub A shared how the drill helped her better understand emergency procedures.
“Ako isara ka may mental disorder. Nami kay naka-experience ako kag nakamaan kung ano ang himuon kung may amo dya matabo sa amon lugar. Ma-apply ko gid dya,” she said.
OCD-6’s Hyacinth Milicable, chief of the Policy Development and Planning Section, lauded the community’s strong engagement.
“Nami gid ang participation kay bilog gid nga community — from the LGU, agencies, uniformed personnel, schools, down to the barangay level. Madasig ang evacuees magdalagan pakadto sa evacuation site, pero kinahanglan pa naton i-improve ang crowd control,” she noted.
OCD-6 confirmed that an improvement plan will be issued once evaluators’ feedback and ratings are consolidated./PN
