ARMM to put up 24/7 emergency nerve center

COTABATO CITY – If Metro Manila has MMDA and Davao City has CALL 911, Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) will be having ARMM-HEART emergency center.ARMM executive secretary Atty. Laisa Alamia in a press briefing today, said a state-of-the-art Humanitarian Emergency Action and Response Team (HEART) operation center will be established this year at the region’s seat in Cotabato City.The operation center will be functioning 24/7, monitoring weather, disasters and any eventualities that may affect the lives of the people, with sub-stations or sattelite offices to be established in five provinces.The 100 million budget is coming from General Appropriations Act allocated for the region this year.Like the MMDA or call 911, the command center will have sets of computers and monitors, establish CCTV’s, purchase radio communications, rescue vehicles and equipment, office supplies and other related needs.A new building will be built in a 500-square-meter areaat the back of now present ARMM-HEART building (previously NEDA-12) still inside the ORG compound through the help of DPWH-ARMM. We aim also to strengthen relationship with our local disaster risk management offices stationed in different localities which we aimed also to provide with necessary equipment or needs,” Alamia said.She added that the operation center will be the nerve center of the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC) operations.The ARMM-HEART 24/7 operation center will primarily cater the constituents of Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi province affected by armed conflict and natural disasters.In 2014, the response team delivered a total of about 18,000 food packs to flood victims and catered 4,234 families affected by armed conflicts in the provinces of Maguindanao, Tawi-Tawi, Sulu and Basilan.Alamia said the team also monitored the deportees from Sabah, Malaysia and conducted several training to capacitate the personnel and rescue teams.”ARMM-HEART was also among the emergency response groups that immediately responded to the relief and emergency needs of families affected by typhoon Yolanda in Tolosa, Leyte and by the Zamboanga siege in 2013.The team continue to strengthen its partnership with non-government organizations that include different humanitarian agencies of the United Nations and civil society organizations.Alamia is urging local government units in the region to be the front line emergency response team in their respective areas.