Author: Neilsen Kisim

SABLAN GETS NEW FIRETRUCK TO BOOST EMERGENCY RESPOSE

The Local Government of Sablan now has a penetrator fire truck after its fruitful counterpart-funding partnership with the provincial government of Benguet headed by Governor Dr. Melchor Daguines Diclas.Governor Diclas said the provincial LGU released P3.8 million to augment the funds available at the said Municipal LGU for the procurement of a P4.4-million firetruck. According to Abner Lawangen, Benguet Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Officer (PDRRMO), the procurement of the penetrator is part of the effort of the Provincial DRRM Council in strengthening the capacity of the municipality to respond to emergency situations.

 Reports say Sablan has recorded significant number of unattended or unmanaged fire incidents due to narrow roads where firetrucks or huge vehicles could not enter prompting the LGU to request for a penetrator, a firetruck designed to penetrate through narrow streets. Governor Diclas and members of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan headed by Vice Governor Ericson Lawagey Felipe officially turned over the penetrator firetruck Monday morning, July 25, at the Provincial Capitol to Sablan LGU headed by Mayor Alfredo Dacumos Jr. Meanwhile, the Provincial DRRM Council chaired by Governor Diclas continues to remind the public to regularly practice fire safety measures as fire incidents in the province are still on the rise. PDRRMO said most of the reported fire cases in the province are caused by negligence, unattended cooking areas, electrical problems, and faulty wirings.

CAPITOL EMPLOYEES PLANT OVER A THOUSAND TREES

Employees of the Provincial Capitol headed by Governor Dr. Melchor Daguines Diclas planted an aggregate of 1,280 assorted seedlings in four different schedules of tree-planting activities since June.
Grouped into different schedules, the employees were sent to plant trees in four identified sites by the Benguet Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (BPENRO), namely, Balakbak Elementary School in Kapangan; Camp 30 in Caliking, Atok; and two sites in Sipsip Communal Forest in Poblacion, Atok.
The seedlings planted were mahogany, guyabano, Benguet coffee, pine trees, and alnus.

Tyson Porin, Community Development Assistant at BPENRO, said the activity is in line with the celebration of the Environment Month last June and in support of the National Greening Program.
The employees are set to conduct series of ‘tree-caring’ activity in September this year for the trees planted in the previous tree-planting activities of the Provincial LGU, where they clean the sites and apply fertilizers, he added.
Further, the Provincial LGU has also donated a total of 1,930 assorted tree seedlings to several municipal LGUs and institutions which they also planted during their tree-planting activities.
The Provincial LGU is managing two nurseries located in Wangal, La Trinidad and Camp 4, Tuba.
Meanwhile, barangay school-based nurseries are also part of the environmental effort of the Provincial Government where schools are provided nursery materials and technical assistance through workshops conducted by the BPENRO.