BONTOC, Mountain Province – Sixty-two barangay officials and functionaries in this capital town underwent the Incident Command System Executive Course (ICSEC) initiated by the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO) in partnership with the Office of Civil Defense-Cordillera.
The first batch of participants from barangays Bontoc Ili, Caluttit, Poblacion, Samoki, Alab Oriente, Alab Proper, Balili, and Gonogon underwent the training on March 18.
The second batch of participants from barangays Bayyo, Can-eo, Talubin, Tocucan, Dalican, Guina-ang, Mainit and Maligcong were scheduled on March 19.
The one-day crash course highlights ICS’ core principles, features, and functions. It also allows users to adopt an integrated organizational structure for a response that is advantageous in any kind of incident, facilitating the integration of diverse personnel, ensuring accountability, and providing logistical and administrative support in a cost-efficient manner.
The ICSEC is designed to capacitate the participants to be effective and efficient incident management officers during disasters and planned events.
MDRRM Officer Johanna Padaen highlighted the importance and willingness of the participants to undergo the training for speedy and orderly disaster response, should an inevitable incident occur in their areas of jurisdictions.
Padaen said the ICS can also be applied in any planned and crowd-drawing events.
“I earnestly believe that we can cultivate a resilient and well-prepared community capable of effectively addressing and mitigating the impact of future emergencies by empowering disaster management leaders through the ICS Executive Course,” Mayor Jerome Tudlong said.
The training covered five modules including Introduction to ICS, Organization and Staffing, ICS Facilities, Managing Planned Events and Major Incidents, and Common Responsibilities. The module lectures were also supplemented by interactive exercises to engage the participants’ attention and retention of the materials presented while fostering collaboration and communication. – Christy Mae C. Pangesfan and Michelle Palacio
