By the time the Command Center of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office is finished this year, it will have “eyes” along the nearly 30-kilometer stretch of the national highway from San Andres to Virac and Bato.
Already, a number of CCTV cameras have been mounted along the road from the provincial capitol compound towards the vicinity of the Catanduanes State University (CatSU), with the same monitoring devices also installed at the Virac and San Andres ports.
The second phase of the project will cover the Virac-Bato and Virac-San Andres routes, the PDRRMO said.
The facility at the third floor of the main capitol building, along with the newly acquired sea ambulance and two speedboats, as well as the PDRRMO Operations Center at the left side of the sprawling compound, were inaugurated and blessed last Dec. 22, 2023.
The facilities and rescue equipment were blessed by Rev. Fr. Renato dela Rosa, in the presence of Governor Joseph Cua, Vice Governor Peter Cua, Virac Mayor Samuel Laynes, OIC-PDRRM Officer Luis Surtida Jr.
At the Command Center, an entire wall is covered by TV monitors showing the views from the CCTV cameras along the length of the national road, which the PDRRMO said has already helped many people in addressing requests for assistance in locating dropped wallets, missing cellphones and similar cases.
The center’s video feed from the cameras is connected via fiber-optic cable to the PDRRMO Operation Center, allowing members of the team to see the same videos in real time and appropriately respond during disaster and emergency situations.
For now, however, the Command Center has yet to operate 24/7 due to lack of personnel, with the facility being run only during the day by the Capitol communications staff.
It is claimed that full operation of the center would require four IT staff for each of the three shifts, or a total of 12, to be supervised by an IT expert.
The primary goal is to create a 9-11 style system, with the Command Center as its core that would provide real-time information to the Operation Center which will be the one to dispatch response units to the emergency.
At present, the PDRRMO has only three permanent personnel, with another 27 responders hired as job order personnel.
The management plans to request the Capitol leadership for augmentation of its personnel, including possibly police officers to be detailed to the Command Center by Camp Camacho.
According to informed sources, the Command Center, funded with an initial P30 million by the Provincial Peace and Order Council (PPOC), was supposed to be installed at the Catanduanes Police Provincial Office headquarters at Camp Francisco Camacho.
However, the PNP leadership passed on the opportunity, allegedly due to the difficulty of maintaining the system and having dedicated personnel on site.
On the other hand, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG)’s Coast Guard Station Catanduanes also did not accept the sea ambulance and two speedboats as it did not have funding allocation for the maintenance of the vessels especially fuel.
The PDRRMO office was renovated to provide cubicles for the personnel as well as offices for its permanent officials, including international agencies involved in Anticipatory Action programs.
The nearby tower was repainted and its damaged doors replaced while a new building was built to provide a dormitory for personnel on duty.