Bacolod City – An ordinance establishing the Emergency Medical and Response Center of Bacolod City is being proposed by Councilor Israel Salanga.
The ordinance said that the frequency of natural disasters and the threat to peace and order posed by criminality and other disturbances require the dedicated efforts of both the government and the private sector.
There is a need to improve public safety services and existing peace and order and public safety mechanisms by providing a clear command structure for responsibility and accessibility, and by encouraging and facilitating prompt deployment of seamless emergency services, it said.
The ordinance said there is also a need to establish a centralized system that will strengthen the emergency response of Bacolod City to further increase the survival rate of its constituents and maximize existing logistics and manpower.
To be known as the Bacolod 911 Ordinance, the measure will be implemented in Bacolod City and will include all medical, emergency, disaster, peace and order response personnel whether volunteers or not.
The ordinance provides that the number designated for all emergency, medical, calamity, disaster, peace and order concerns is 911. The Bacolod Risk Reduction Management Office (BDRRMO) will appeal to network providers to make 911 calls from Bacolod City free to encourage indigent fellowmen to use the service.
It also said the city will appropriate an initial budget of ₱ 500,000 to be taken from the DRRMO fund to defray all expenses it may occur to implement this ordinance.
(Chrysee Semillano via The Visayan Daily Star (TVDS), photo courtesy of TVDS)