DILG urges LGUs to brace for future tremors after Mindanao earthquake

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) urged local government units (LGUs) to prepare for future earthquakes after the magnitude 7.8 tremor that shook Mindanao last week.

“As the country remains highly vulnerable to seismic hazards, the DILG underscored the importance of institutionalizing preparedness and recovery mechanisms at the local level,” the department said in a statement on Tuesday.

It also “urged local government units to maximize the use of the Operation L!STO Manual on Disaster Preparedness for Earthquakes to strengthen preparedness, response, recovery, and rehabilitation efforts.”

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READ: Mindanao earthquake: DILG urges LGUs to audit infrastructure

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The Operation L!STO Manual outlines guidelines for LGUs to provide frontline services before, during and after major earthquakes.

The massive quake that shook Mindanao struck 32 kilometers southwest of Maasim, Sarangani at 7:37 a.m. on June 8, triggering thousands of aftershocks across the region.

For its part, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said it was coordinating with government agencies concerned to prevent the scavenging of marine life exposed when some coastal areas were uplifted during the earthquake.

“I have explicitly directed our local units in the affected areas to establish tight security checkpoints and maritime monitoring points around the uplifted coastal areas in Sarangani and Davao Occidental to strictly prohibit anyone from scavenging or harvesting exposed marine life,” PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said in a statement on Tuesday.

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“While we understand the immediate needs of the communities after this powerful earthquake, consuming dead, dying, or contaminated seafood poses severe health risks that we cannot afford to overlook,” he added.

The Department of the Environment and Natural Resources in Soccsksargen previously reported unusually low sea levels in the hard-hit town of Glan in Sarangani.

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The lifting of the seabed reportedly caused some marine animals to die. /apl

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