NATIONWIDE EARTHQUAKE DRILL CANCELED DUE TO CORONAVIRUS

OUTBREAK

The NDRRMC says the first quarter drill was canceled to 'ensure public health
safety of the drill participants and to prevent the possible risk of contracting
COVID-19'

MANILA, Philippines – The National Disaster Risk Reduction and

Management Council (NDRRMC) has canceled the first quarter
nationwide simultaneous earthquake drill (NSED) that was supposed to
be held on Thursday, March 12.

The NDRRMC announced this in a memo dated Tuesday, March 10,

following a spike in confirmed local cases of COVID-19, the disease caused
by the 2019 novel coronavirus.
The virus has infected at least 35 people in the Philippines, and has placed
hundreds more under investigation.
The NDRRMC said the cancellation of the quarterly drill was done to “ensure
public health safety of the drill participants and to prevent the possible risk
of contracting COVID-19.”
It’s also in line with President Rodrigo Duterte’s declaration of a state of
public health emergency, which orders all government agencies and local
government units to cooperate and mobilize necessary resources to combat
the coronavirus.
The NSED is comprised of a series of simulation exercises conducted all over
the Philippines to instill a culture of disaster preparedness among Filipinos
and promote disaster awareness.
The NSED aims to evaluate the effectiveness of local governments'
contingency plans and protocols in relation to earthquake scenarios and
other similar events.