Photo caption: Paranaque City Mayor Edwin Olivarez, together with DOST-PHIVOLCS Deputy Director Dr Bartolome Bautista, leads the ribbon cutting ceremony of the exhibit on Tsunami Awareness and Preparedness #HandaAngMayAlam held in Paranaque City.

PARAnAQUE CITY, Nov. 6 (PIA) -- The Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (DOST-PHIVOLCS) led yesterday the celebration of the World Tsunami Awareness Day at the Paranaque Sports and Social Hall.

The event is a two-day forum and exhibit entitled "Tsunami Awareness and Preparedness #HandaAngMayAlam," where students from various cities of Metro Manila such as Paranaque, Las Pinas, Valenzuela, Manila, Pasay, Malabon and Navotas participated to learn about tsunamis, its effects and mitigation, from the experts of PHIVOLCS and Japan International Cooperation Agency or JICA.

City Mayor Edwin Olivarez noted that cities near the coast like Paranaque should be knowledgeable on what should be done once a tsunami occurs.

"Cascading information and strengthening awareness to the barangay-level will help lessen the amount of damage and casualties in the affected areas,"Olivarez said.

Meanwhile, PHIVOLCS Deputy Director, Dr. Bartolome Bautista, said in his speech, most of the coastal areas in the Philippines are densely populated, hence, the need for higher public awareness on tsunamis and its nature to avoid enormous casualties.

Bautista added that the celebration also provided opportunities to share innovative approaches for tsunami mitigation.

JICA Expert for Disaster Reduction Management Takanori Zemmoto also shared the lessons learned by Japanese from tsunami incidents.

Zemmoto said there are two waves of the earthquake: If you feel the first shake, you must take action to protect yourself. He also showed the participants some actual footages of tsunami incidents and the ensuing destruction that happened in different places in Japan.

Experts also said there are many active faults in the Philippines, and it would be better for us to familiarize ourselves with the faults near where we reside. In the case of Paranaque City, a tsunami can be created through the shaking of the Manila Trench.

Teachers and local disaster risk reduction management officers (DRRMOs) from each locality of Metro Manila also participated and gained new insights on how to respond in cases of Tsunami.

On the other hand, Office of Civil Defence-NCR Regional Director Romulo Cabantac Jr. said the proper response for tsunami events is different from the "Big One", which is said to occur with a magnitude 7.2 earthquake that will be caused by the West Valley Fault.

Cabantac encouraged the local government to establish its own preparedness measures for tsunami events.

The OCD official also emphasized that their agency will also help in preparedness efforts and roll out additional fora that cater to tsunami awareness and preparedness for local government units. (PIA-NCR)

Part of the Tsunami Awareness and Preparedness #HandaAngMayAlam Exhibit

Part of the Tsunami Awareness and Preparedness #HandaAngMayAlam Exhibit