As part of its efforts of protecting coastal communities, the Iloilo provincial government established a state-of-the-art DRRM Inter-Agency Resilience Hub (Operation Center) in the municipality of Carles to mitigate the town’s vulnerabilities to disasters.

Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. led the inauguration ceremony on March 10, 2025 of the two-storey P10 million facility which was funded through the P5 million budget from the provincial government and another P5 million from the disaster fund of Carles.

Governor Defensor Jr. shared that the facility was originally conceptualized as headquarters of the Provincial Bantay Dagat Task Force as well as a center for the management of the Visayan Sea. But later on, it evolved into a centralized command that will respond to disasters and other prevailing emergency situations such as climate change, food security, and health crisis, among others.

It will be a municipal extension of the Provincial Civil Defense Service of Iloilo (ProCiD Serv Iloilo), a brainchild of Governor Defensor, which is a comprehensive and integrated system for disaster risk reduction and management, disease control, insurgency, criminality, illegal drugs, food security, and education concerns, among others.

The governor added that the facility is also expected to address the threats posed by the rise in dengue cases in the province.

“We recognize that there are prevailing, lingering, and continuing state of national emergencies. So this facility that we give to municipalities will be the headquarters to take care of lingering state of emergencies,” Defensor said.

Defensor thanked the municipality of Carles for its counterpart in the construction, noting that this is the first Resilience Hub which was completed through the collaboration of the provincial and municipal governments.

The province of Iloilo is also building Resilience Hubs in the coastal towns of Estancia, Banate, Concepcion, and Ajuy.

Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office chief Ret. Col. Cornelio Salinas said the Resilience Hub was designed to boost the operational capacity of local government units, particularly on disaster preparedness and emergency response.

“Equipped with modern communication and monitoring tools, this hub will enable real-time information gathering, swift decision-making, and coordinated emergency response efforts. It will serve as a safe space for disaster planning, simulation exercises, and capacity-building programs for our responders and the community,” Salinas said.

The PDRRMO chief noted  that the facility is an embodiment that disaster risk reduction is a shared responsibility and is a clear demonstration of collaborative efforts towards creating a safer and more disaster-resilient community.

Joining Governor Defensor and Salinas during the blessing and inauguration are Mayor Siegfredo Betita, Vice Mayor Arnold Betita II, Anilao Mayor Lee Ann Debuque, and Office of Civil Defense VI 24/7 Operations Unit Head and Regional Spokesperson Tina Mayor.

Also present are the municipal disaster risk reduction and management officers from other towns in the province who want to learn the protocols of operating a resilience hub. (Capitol News)

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