PH humanitarian contingent to be deployed to quake-hit Morocco —NDRRMC exec

The Philippines will soon send a humanitarian contingent to provide assistance to earthquake-hit Morocco, an executive of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said on Friday. 

“What happened to Morocco recently is a reminder to all of us to continuously prepare against the threat of earthquakes, especially the big ones. We sympathize with the affected communities in Morocco following the Magnitude 6.8 earthquake that hit its country’s High Atlas Mountains. We are looking into the possible deployment of the Philippine Inter-Agency Humanitarian Contingent (PIAHC) to Morocco. The Office of Civil Defense (OCD), as the executive arm of NDRRMC, is already making arrangements for this," NDRRMC Undersecretary and Civil Defense Administrator Ariel Nepomuceno said.

A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Morocco on Friday, September 8, the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ) said.

The epicenter was located about 72 km east of the Moroccan city of Marrakesh, according to the United States Geological Survey.

More than 2,900 people died in the earthquake. The number may still rise as search, rescue, and retrieval operations continue in affected areas.

No Filipinos were killed in the powerful earthquake, the Department of Foreign Affairs said. However, some Filipinos refused to go back to their apartments out of fear of aftershocks.

“We are deeply saddened by the aftermath of the earthquake that hit Morocco. We want to assure Morocco that the Philippines is more than willing to extend assistance to support the ongoing response operations. We are organizing a humanitarian contingent for possible deployment," Nepomuceno added.

President “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Tuesday said the Philippines stands in grief and solidarity with Morocco, and added that the country is ready to offer assistance and support for Morocco's quick recovery from the tragedy.

The humanitarian contingent will comprise of personnel from the OCD, 525th Engineering Combat Battalion-Philippine Army, 505th Search and Rescue Group-Philippine Air Force, Bureau of Fire Protection-Special Rescue Unit, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, Davao Rescue 911, and Department of Health, the NDRRMC said in a press release.

Last February, the Philippines also sent an 82-man PIAHC team to Turkiye after it was hit by a magnitude 7.8 earthquake. The said earthquake also affected Syria and caused 50,288 deaths and 125,857 injuries.

Earthquake preparedness

Meanwhile, Nepomuceno called on the public and other stakeholders to participate in the government's earthquake resilience endeavors.

“It is terrifying that in just seconds, an earthquake could claim many lives and leave massive destruction. Through the whole-of-government and whole-of-nation approach, we should strengthen our prevention, mitigation, and preparedness measures against earthquakes.” he said. —KG, GMA Integrated News