INTRODUCTION
Project ALERT (Alleviating Learning Through Emergency Response Training) reduces the danger to humans and property and reduces the cost of improving from a disaster. A hazard mitigation plan can assist schools and communities become greater sustainable and disaster-resistant via focusing efforts on the hazards, disaster-prone areas and identifying mitigation actions. Effective mitigation planning and efforts can destroy the cycle of catastrophe damage, reconstruction, and repeated damage. Mitigation Plans structure the foundation for a community’s long-term methods in which disaster losses and break the cycle of disaster damage, reconstruction, and repeated damage. The planning method is as important as the plan itself. It creates a framework for risk-based selection making to reduce damages to lives, property, and the economic system from future disasters. Hazard mitigation is sustained action taken to reduce or eliminate long-term danger to human beings and their property from hazards. (Philippine Public Safety, 2018).
Project ALERT plans are created to protect the health, safety and economic interests of residents by reducing the impacts of natural hazards through planning, awareness, and implementation of mitigation alternatives. Hazard mitigation is any action taken to permanently eliminate or reduce the long-term risk to human life and property from natural hazards. It is an essential element of emergency management along with preparedness, response, and recovery.
The Act shifted the policy environment and the way the country deals with disasters from mere response to preparedness. RA 10121 provides a comprehensive, all-hazard, multi-sectoral, inter-agency, and community-based approach to disaster risk management through the formulation of the National Disaster Risk Management Framework. A National Disaster Risk Management Plan (NDRMP) is being formulated, developed, and implemented as the master plan that will provide the strategies, organization, tasks of concerned agencies and local government units, and other guidelines in dealing with disasters or emergencies. Through this plan, a coherent, integrated, efficient, and responsive disaster risk management at all levels will hopefully be achieved. The law also promotes the development of capacities in disaster management at the individual, organizational, and institutional levels. A very important feature of this law is its call for the mainstreaming of disaster risk reduction in physical and land-use planning, budget, infrastructure, education, health, environment.
The RA 10121 also recognizes local risk patterns and trends and decentralization of resources and responsibilities and thus encourages the participation of NGOs, private sectors, community-based organizations, and community members in disaster management. It inhibits the full participation of the Local Government Units (LGUs) and communities in governance. The approach tends to be 'response-oriented' or 'reactive.' This is evidenced by the widespread emphasis on post-disaster relief and short-term preparedness, such as forecasting and evacuation, rather than on mitigation and post- disaster support for economic recovery.
Moreover, the Act mandates the establishment of a Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (DRRMO) in every province, city and municipality, and a Barangay Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Committee (BDRRMC) in every barangay.
Finally, RA10121 provides for the calamity fund to be used in support of disaster risk reduction or mitigation, prevention, and preparedness activities for the potential occurrence of disasters and not just for response, relief, and rehabilitation efforts. In addition, disaster preparedness refers to measures taken to prepare for and reduce the effects of disasters. That is, to predict and, where possible, prevent disasters, mitigate their influence on prone populations, and respond to and efficiently cope with their consequences. Disaster preparedness presents a platform to design effective, practical and coordinated planning, reduces duplication of efforts and expand the normal effectiveness of National Societies, household and community individual disaster preparedness and response efforts. Disaster preparedness activities embedded with risk reduction measures can prevent catastrophe conditions and also end result in saving most lives and livelihoods at some point of any disaster situation, enabling the affected population to get back to normalcy within a short time period. Disaster preparedness is a continuous and integrated method resulting from a vast range of risk reduction activities and resources instead from a distinct sectoral activity through itself. It requires the contributions of many exclusive areas ranging from training and logistics, to health care, recovery, livelihood to institutional development. (Red Crescent Societies, 2018)
Based on Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-390) requires state and local governments to develop all-hazard mitigation plans as a condition of federal grant assistance. The act also established a Hazard Mitigation Grant Program to help communities, following a presidential major disaster declaration, to prepare for and protect against future disasters.
The NDRRMC and intermediary LDRRMCs shall always act as support to LGUs which have the primary responsibility as first disaster responders. Private sector and civil society groups shall work in accordance with the coordination mechanism and policies set by the NDRRMC and concerned LDRRMCs.
In consonance with DepEd Memorandum No. 123 s. 2017, the Department of Education through Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Services instructs all regional and schools division office to observe the national Resilience Month in accordance with DepEd Order No. 25 s. 2017. They are expected to undertake relevant activities that emphasize building disaster resilience covering the four thematic areas of disasters namely disaster prevention and mitigation, disaster preparedness, disaster response and disaster rehabilitation and recovery.
The location of Nasugbu West Central School contributes on how the schools experience hazard and disaster during typhoon and other calamities that comes to schools.
Project ALERT means on how the schools prepare for the emergence of disasters. In this way, it will be able to protect themselves, and also the equipment. It also refers on providing foods, clothing, medicines, and many more. Hazard mitigation and disaster preparedness are useful and important because it will know when or what catastrophe is going to, and it that way, they can prepare well. This study will focus on the Project ALERT of Nasugbu West Central School.
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