Make It Davao: SECURITY AND CIVIL DEFENSE

Showing posts with label SECURITY AND CIVIL DEFENSE. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Davao City's 911 Bus Ambulance

Davao City's 911 Bus Ambulance

This is Davao City's newly acquired state-of-the-art bus ambulance equipped with top-of-the-line medical facilities and emergency equipment for rescue operations. The first of its kind in the country, it is complemented by a team of medical professionals: nurses, first-aid personnel and a doctor. It can accommodate 15 patients at a time and may be converted into an operating room of a hospital.

Interior of the Bus Ambulance

The recent acquisition of the bus ambulance is part of Davao City's continuing expansion and enhancement of its emergency response mechanism to better manage crime, terrorism, traffic and emergency responses and public safety in the city; from responding to critical situations to anticipating and preventing them, when and where possible.

All services of the bus ambulance are FREE!

Images courtesy of, and many thanks to DOT-Davao Dir. Art Boncato.

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Davao City Traffic Management Center Advisories and Updates

I chanced upon the following very important traffic advisories and updates from one of Davao City forums and thought of posting these for everyone residing in, and visiting the city. For more information, advisories and updates, please follow the Davao City Traffic Management Center Official Twitter Account - twitter.com/TrafficDabaw.

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Davao City Public Safety Command Center

Davao City is under constant watch 24/7 because of its Public Safety Command Center (PSCC). Costing at a hefty sum of P704-million, it is the Philippines' first ever Traffic Monitoring Center equipped with the most advanced and state-of-the-art traffic monitoring facilities patterned after the ones in Los Angeles, California, and is said to be better than the Emergency 911 of the United States.

Vice Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte

PSCC is the brainchild of the then Mayor now Vice Mayor, the Honorable Rodrigo Duterte who issued Executive Order No. 12 creating the PSCC which is grounded on the provision that "every local government unit exercises the powers necessary and proper for the governance such as the promotion of health and safety, enhancement of prosperity, improvement of morals, the maintenance of peace and order, and the preservation of comfort and convenience of the inhabitants within their respective jurisdictions." With the increasing number of incidents and disasters and complexities of human activities in the city of Davao, the good Vice Mayor felt the immediate need to bring together the different government agencies to ensure that any and all actions, measures, policies, and programs are worked in a coordinated manner with one another to better address public safety concerns.

PSCC Traffic Monitoring System

Davao City has 65 intersections and 17 high-tech CCTV cameras were strategically installed in 16 main thoroughfares of the City. These CCTVs have 35x zoom capabilities which provide clear visuals even in low-light conditions.

35x Zoom CCTV Camera

The PSCC acts as the nerve center for these CCTVs which closely monitor movements in the entry and exit points and populated areas in the downtown areas, and the traffic signalization for Davao City, and serves as the center for coordination on matters of public safety with the following government agencies:

Davao City Police Office (DCPO) - On crime prevention, suppression, and investigation;

Davao Traffic Management Command, Traffic Group - DCPO - On traffic management and enforcement;

City Health Office and City Social Services and Development Offices - On actual and emerging health emergencies and management of victims and emergency shelters;

Central 911, Bureau of Fire Protection, Red Cross and volunteer organizations - On all types of rescue services, including fire prevention and suppression, and hazardous materials response;

Davao City Disaster Coordinating Council, Office of the Civil Defense, and Regional Disasters Coordinating Council - On planning and responding during calamities, disasters, and other special events.

PSCC is also equipped with a Weather Monitoring and Flood Alert System which consists of an Automated Weather Station (AWS), river level gauge, personal tracker, land and sea tracking devices. These devices immediately communicate all obtained information to the responders and to concerned officials and leaders. Data generated by these devices are transmitted via SMART’s cellular network which are easily accessed by the PSCC. The AWS are calibrated regularly based on World Meteorological Organization (WMO) standards under the guidance of weather specialists from PAGASA.

The system was developed by a group of students of the Ateneo de Davao University Engineering and Architecture Division and was funded by the Smart Communications, Inc. (SMART), one of the leading telecommunications carriers in the Philippines. These Ateneo students composed of Charese Olmoguez, Ann Marie Roselle Balinas and Flora May dela Cruz with Engineer Marloue O. Pidor as mentor, developed an upgraded version of the search and rescue management system which placed second during the 2008 SWEEP Innovation Awards organized by SMART. SWEEP or Smart Wireless Engineering Education Program is an educational initiative of telecommunications firm of which ADDU is a partner-school.

The weather monitoring and flood alert system is part of city’s disaster preparedness program made possible thorough the collective efforts and partnership of the Davao City government, the Ateneo de Davao University and Smart Communications, Inc.

Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio

The warning system was launched during the inauguration of the Public Safety Command Center on July 29, 2010 which was attended by Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) deputy administrator Susan Espinueva, national and local government officials and other officials from the private sector.

About 20 of these manual rain gauges were donated by SMART and are deployed in the city’s flood-prone barangays. A point of contact person is designated to each of the barangay to monitor the gauges daily and to ensure that the units are working and safe.

The Public Safety Command Center is housed in a beautifully designed two-storey building located beside the old SIR public market near Ecoland where the Central 911 emergency communications center now stands.

Friday, July 29, 2011

Central 911

This special post is dedicated to the men and women of Davao City Central 911 whose valor in the midst of disaster and life-threatening situations unselfishly risk their very own lives so that others may live, and to the Man behind it all, the Honorable Rodrigo R. Duterte.

"This is my commandment:

Love one another as I have loved you.

A man can have no greater love

than to lay down his life for his friends"

John 15: 12-14

Davao City Central 911

The Davao City Central Communication and Emergency Response Center, or the Davao City Central 911 is the first of its kind emergency response system in the Philippines and in Asia, and the third in the world after the United States and Canada. It is the brainchild of no less than the then City Mayor of Davao City, now Vice Mayor, Honorable Rodrigo R. Duterte as part of his peace and order program for the people of Davao City.

Davao City Central 911 is a highly computerized, fully integrated emergency and rescue dispatch system that links the residents of Davao to the entire emergency resources of Davao City. It provides residents of Davao City immediate response to emergencies by simply dialing 911 on any land line or mobile phone.

Patterned after the 911 system of the United States and Canada, Davao City Central 911 uses a modified version of its Geographic and Information System (GIS), called, the Emergency Computer Aided Dispatch (ECAD), a computerized mapping system that allows authorities locate the origin of a distress call and even tracks police response time to emergency calls. It utilizes GIS maps plotted with grid lines to triangulate location of the caller. It also captures stores and recalls data in an electronic database. The system uses color-coded icons which monitor movement and location of police mobile units: Blue for mobile units at rest; Red for on the move response, and Green for onsite.

Established in September 27, 2002, and in partnership with the Davao Light and Power Company, the Davao City Central 911 presently consists of fire auxiliaries, K-9 units, urban search and rescue teams, police and emergency medical services. The center operates 24/7 and is interconnected with telecommunications companies such as the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company, Bayantel, Globe, Smart, and Sun Cellular, to enable easy access via mobile phone.

911 Call Center

The 911 Call Center answers emergency calls and logs the appropriate information on the ECAD system, and pinpoints the precise location of the emergency on the GIS maps projected on their computer screens. The information gathered is automatically sent to the dispatcher who immediately deploys the appropriate responder nearest to the scene of emergency.

Urban Search and Rescue Unit

Trained by the Philippine Army's Special Forces and the Philippine Airforce, the Urban Search and Rescue Unit is equipped with high-tech and cutting edge rescue tools and equipments for various emergencies such as, road accident extrications, high-angle operations, swift-water rescues, open sea and deep water rescues, confined space operations, and even animal control cases.

Always ready in any action

Search and Rescue Vehicle

Rescue Unit

Cutting edge tools

Cutting edge rescue tools and equipment

Emergency Medical Services

Central 911 is manned by highly trained emergency medical technicians ready to respond to any medical emergencies. 911 ambulance is equipped with state-of-the-art basic life support and life saving equipment and has communication gadgets linked to the Call Center and the Davao Medical Center. 911 EMS unit caters to pre-arrival and pre-hospital emergency medical care. They also conduct on-line or telephone triage and transport patients to medical facilities.

Emergency Medical Response Team

911 ambulance is equipped with state-of-the-art basic life support

and life saving equipment

911 ambulance has communication gadgets

linked to the Call Center and the Davao Medical Center

911 EMS unit caters to pre-arrival and pre-hospital emergency medical care

911 EMS unit also conduct on-line or telephone triage and

transport patients to medical facilities

Philippine Army Medic

The men and women of the Emergency Medical Response Team

Fire Auxiliary Services Unit

To complement the fire fighting ability of the Bureau of Fire Protection, Central 911 has established its own Fire Auxiliary Services Unit. These highly technical and well trained fire fighters operate and follow the incident command system during fire cases for the efficient operation and collaboration with the BFP and other Volunteer Fire Fighters. The 911 Fire Auxiliary Services Unit is trained and equipped to respond to high-rise fires and even the dreaded inner-skirt fires in highly populated areas.

Brave men of the Fire Auxiliary Services Unit

Various fire equipment

K-9 Units

Another feature of Davao City Central 911 is its very own K-9 unit. Its bomb and drug sniffing dogs were specially trained in Camp Crame. The 911 K-9 unit operates daily at the Davao City International Airport and other strategic places to help curb the threats of terrorism.

Police Assistance

Davao City Central 911 provides police emergency assistance by dispatching mobile patrol units nearest to the crime scene. The Davao City Police Office's mobile patrol cars are equipped with radio communication equipment linked to the 911 Call Center.