TSUNAMI ALERT SYSTEMS BEING INSTALLED

A tsunami as high as nine meters that could be generated by the anticipated “The Big One” earthquake is another serious threat that the coastal city of Dagupan is preparing for, according to emergency response officials.

Melekhen Bauzon, chief of the Public Alert Response and Monitoring Center (PARMC), cited that studies made by scientists of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) indicate that the movement of the Manila Trench is now long overdue and could happen anytime.

Speaking during the TV program “Bantay Dagupan: Sumbungan ng Bayan” hosted by Mayor Belen Fernandez, Bauzon said this is the reason why the Dagupan City government has installed a Tsunami Warning System initially in five barangays, and is currently installing four more within this month, and another six will be purchased under the 2026 budget.

Ronald de Guzman, city disaster risk reduction and management officer, said Tsunami Warning Systems are already in place in Bonuan Binloc, Bonuan Gueset, Pugaro, Lucao and at the top of the Malimgas Public Market in Barangay II and III. Four will be installed in Bonuan  Gueset near the beach, near the evacuation center in Bonuan Boquig, and in the island villages of  Lomboy and Salapingao.

The mayor said the warning system will automatically activate when the equipment in Bolinao detects a high-magnitude earthquake offshore, giving residents only 12 minutes to evacuate to higher ground or at least to the second floor of a building.

Fernandez said she is actually more worried about the impact of a tsunami than earthquakes.

Two evacuation centers, one in Salapingao and the other in Bonuan Boquig, were already constructed by the city government, while another in Barangay Pugaro is underway.

Bauzon and De Guzman reported that there are now more than 200 owners of high-rise buildings participating in the Privately-hosted Temporary Evacuation Center program, which means they have agreed to accommodate their neighbors temporarily when there is a tsunami alert. (Leonardo Micua)