“Kapag may fire drill, hindi dapat tayo pa-bebe. Dapat kumilos tayo na paranng may sunog talaga.” (When a fire drill is being held, we should not be pa-bebe. We should act as though there really is a fire).
That was the advise that FO2 Jefferson F. Samson from the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) of Los Banos gave to the student-participants of the fire drill, which the local Occupational Health and Safety Standards Committees (OHSSC) of the College of Development Communication (CDC) and the College of Economics and Management (CEM) spearheaded on 19 August 2015.
The BFP assessed the drills and pointed out that students need to be on their toes and to move fast, but orderly.
“Ang apoy ay lumalaki every thirty seconds. Kaya kung hindi tayo kikilos ng mabilis, baka ma-trap tayo sa loob ng building, ” he added. (Fire spreads every thirty seconds, so if we don’t move fast, we might get trapped inside the building).
According to Dr. Macrina T. Zafaralla, Chair of the OHSSC of the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Community Affairs (OVCCA), the drill was part of a series of earthquake and fire drills that they planned to hold among the different UPLB colleges and units in preparation for a university-wide drill.
The series of drills kicked off on 30 July 2015 at the Abelardo G. Samonte Hall among UPLB staff members.
“In cooperation with the OHSSCs of the colleges and units and the Bureau of Fire Protection of Los Banos, we will also be holding orientations and seminars on emergency response and disaster preparedness,” she said.
She added that they will be assessing buildings and recommending measures or infrastructure modifications that colleges and units can do to reduce the risk of hazards. (Miguel Victor T. Durian, Malvin G. Biguerras, & Joseph A. Pagtananan)