The four "water-supply
kits for emergency," which would be prepositioned in four areas at
high risk for climate disasters, were turned over to the PRC on Sept.
7 and will be received by four PRC chapters in Luzon and Visayas this
week.
Each kit can purify
raw water into safe drinking water – supplying liters for up to 10,000
people, said Andres Casal, the ICRC's water and habitat coordinator. A
water-supply set includes a pump, water treatment unit, storage
bladders and tap stands for distribution.
"One of the first
problems you have to address during a disaster is access to drinking
water because in most cases, the structures attached to drinking water
are damaged. The high concentrations of people in one place, also
leads to degradation of sanitary conditions, so you have to ensure
water of good quality and quantity," said Casal.
The Philippines, he
pointed out, was extremely prone to disasters especially now that it
is experiencing the rainy season.
"With the kits in
place, trained PRC volunteers would be able to install them in as
short as half a day. These kits will be stored by PRC chapters in
Dagupan, Legazpi, Roxas and Tacloban cities until such time that it is
needed by the population," he said, adding that water-supply kits have
been prepositioned in Mindanao.
Supplying clean water,
added Casal, also prevents the outbreak of water-borne diseases like
cholera.
He said the donation,
along with this year's training of around 70 PRC volunteers on water
and sanitation, were aimed at improving disaster response since the
experience of Tropical Storm Ondoy in 2009.
The ICRC had supported
the PRC's efforts to distribute clean drinking water to families
affected by the massive flooding caused by Ondoy. In flooded jails,
the ICRC worked with the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology to
restore water supply and disinfect the water.
The trainings
conducted by ICRC engineers will ensure that identified PRC volunteers
would know how to install, operate and maintain water and sanitation
facilities during emergency situations.
"We taught them
techniques on purifying water to make it proper for human consumption,
building latrines in emergency situations, and also hygiene promotion.
The trainings came before the donation because people who receive the
kits must know how to use them," said Casal.
Over a hundred
volunteers have undergone water and sanitation training since 2006,
according to Iris Von Birgelen, the ICRC delegate in charge of
cooperation with PRC.
"We do a lot of
preparedness activities as part of our capacity-building for the PRC,
and our long-term commitment to support the national society. We are
not only there when things have happened. There's a whole lot of work
beforehand to support PRC in further enhancing their capacity to
respond to disaster," she said.
Though the ICRC's
task consists mainly in serving people affected by armed conflict, Von
Birgelen stressed that the organization is prepared to support and
work with the PRC during major natural disasters, particularly in
water and sanitation and restoring family links.
