Bianca Dava, ABS-CBN News
MANILA — Around 350 personnel from the Philippine Coast Guard, Armed Forces of the Philippines, and Philippine National Police are taking part in a three-day exercise in Manila to test how the agencies would respond to a major earthquake.
The interagency exercise, called “Pagsasanay Sanlakas,” opened on Wednesday at the PCG National Headquarters. It will run until October 2.
PCG deputy commandant for operations Vice Admiral Edgar Ybañez, who presided over the opening ceremony, said the exercise is meant to see if the three agencies can work together as a coordinated response force despite different mandates and chains of command.
“The true measure of our effort over these three days will not be the number of assets or personnel assembled in this hall,” Ybañez said.
“Rather, it will be defined by our collective determination to align our organizations today so that we are fully prepared before a crisis demands it.”
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The simulation will focus on a large-scale earthquake that would require the rapid deployment of government personnel and resources for search and rescue, retrieval, and humanitarian assistance and disaster response.
Ybañez said units "must understand one another’s capabilities, workflows, and operational limits long before the call for assistance arrives"and not only when disaster strikes.
“Identifying an operational gap during an exercise is not a failure; the true failure lies in discovering that gap for the first time during a real crisis,” he added.
The exercise will have two components: A tabletop exercise, where participants will go through response plans and decision-making scenarios, and a field training exercise, which will test their ability to carry out coordinated operations.
He said that during crises, “those in distress will not ask which agency holds jurisdiction or how our organizational structures are configured, they will simply ask for assistance"
Ybañez said the participating agencies must identify weaknesses in their plans, test communication channels and clarify command relationships before an actual emergency occurs.
He also emphasized that the Incident Command System will serve as the backbone of the exercise, allowing agencies with separate chains of command to operate within a common framework.
“For an operational commander, coordination in a crisis is not an administrative routine; it is a strategic necessity that directly impacts our ability to save lives,” Ybañez stressed.
The activity is the second iteration of the Joint AFP-PNP-PCG Education, Training and Doctrine Cell interagency exercise. It is being hosted by the PCG through its Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Education and Training.
Rear Admiral Christopher Meniado, commander of the Coast Guard District National Capital Region-Central Luzon, serves as exercise director.
The Office of Civil Defense and the Manila City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Department are also participating.