• THERESA MAE DULMAN
A community-based flood early warning system project was launched in Bacolod City to strengthen disaster preparedness and provide earlier alerts on weather disturbances.
The initiative involves the installation of 33 monitoring and warning devices alongside 12 smart switches across 19 designated locations, including barangay halls, schools, gymnasiums, and river sites in the highly-urbanized city.
It includes automated rain gauges, weather stations, water-level sensors, air-quality monitors, and warning sirens capable of producing sounds up to 130 decibels, the city said Oct. 23.
The collected data will feed into a centralized online command center, with plans for integration into the city’s G-App for public notifications and emergency coordination.
The initiative covers 14 primary sites equipped with combined water-level and rainfall monitoring equipment, Dr. Anna Maria Laarni Pornan, head of the Bacolod City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (DRRMO), said.
She said that monitoring devices will be positioned along rivers and bridges for water level, and locations, such as Alangilan, for rain gauge.
She added the DRRMO will conduct orientations for communities where the water level monitoring is established, so that residents would know what to do when the water rises. Warning sirens will be installed to familiarize them with specific tone patterns, indicating when to prepare or evacuate.
The sirens will be remotely operated from the command center.
The system’s weather sensors can also be utilized during dry spells, or El Niño events.
Launched Oct. 22, the project timeline spans 180 days, covering site validation, system design, installation, testing, community training, and final turnover. | TMD
