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SAGIP helps prepare for disasters

US Marine Corps News

3/18/2010
By Lance Cpl. Kentavist P. Brackin, Marine Corps Bases Japan

Elements of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Joint Special Operations Task Force Philippines conducted humanitarian assistance/disaster relief classes March 9 - 11 in preparation for Sagip 2010.

Sagip, which means "to save" or "to help" in Tagalog, is a scenario-based command post exercise that tests the Philippine and U.S. forces' abilities to provide humanitarian assistance and disaster relief under the Philippine Disaster Management system.

In recent history the Marine Corps has responded to several natural disasters. Tropical Storm Ketsana, which hit the Republic of the Philippines Sept. 26, is one example of Marines assisting a foreign country during a time of distress.

The three days of training prior to the March 15 start of Sagip 2010 covered essential mechanisms and emergency responses for the AFP, Philippine civil defense agencies and U.S. forces.

Pablito Cordeta, a senior superintendent and regional director for the Bureau of Fire Protection, and first time participant in Sagip, said the training was very informative.

"We learned a lot about relief efforts in the Philippines: relief, recovery and restoration and how we respond," Cordeta said.

He noted that U.S. forces also stand to gain a lot of knowledge about emergency relief efforts due to the frequency of natural disasters in this region.

Sagip 2010 training included identifying, balancing and prioritizing requirements, allocating resources, building and sustaining relationships and transitional planning and oversight during humanitarian aid and disaster relief efforts.

The point instructors hope to drive home is that planners should use lessons learned from real-world situations, said Col. Jim Reilly, the deputy director for Standing Joint Forces Headquarters - Pacific.

Disasters from the past decade were used as examples of how Philippine and U.S. forces could improve their responses. Examples included the earthquake in Haiti earlier this year and the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami that resulted in more than 200,000 deaths across the Asia-Pacific region.

"The most interesting things I learned during this training is that the Philippine government already has the mechanisms to handle disaster in their country and they continuously upgrade their disaster management system to increase their potential to handle disasters," said Army Maj. Mario D. Calad, deputy commander for civil military operations during the Sagip 2010 and with the 322nd Civil Affairs Brigade.

Cmdr. Ramon Dela Torre Jr., with the Philippine Navy, has participated in previous events. Torre said training events like Sagip 2010 improve Philippine and U.S. disaster response, especially in the areas of coordination and communication.

Navy Lt Cmdr. Jason Nunez, the exercise's Naval forces liaison officer for the exercise, said he paid particular attention to the training and the interface between the different groups. His parents were both from the Philippines.

Past natural disasters such as the two typhoons that struck the Philippines in 2009 and the earthquake that recently devastated Haiti were discussed by participants of Sagip 2010, said Calad.

Planners discussed these events to better understand what to expect in future natural disasters and how to better plan and allocate logistics, said Calad. Lessons learned from these past disasters were also used for planning during Sagip 2010, he added.

"We're adjusting to different cultures, military, civilian," he said. "We're setting up these groups for unity of effort. What I've learned is that the procedures on the military side and the procedures on the civilian side are very intricate, and the training provides a template for how to start off."

Sagip 2009 focused on a mock external threat to the Philippines and had the United States acting as a supporting ally in the exercise.

This year's scenario focused on Philippine and U.S. personnel coordinating and providing disaster relief/humanitarian assistance to residents in Manila and coordinating with civilian government agencies in the wake of a mock earthquake hitting the area.

"I am going to be looking for knowledge of the situation and communication between both sides. The tendency is that we are bystanders, everyone is looking around waiting for someone to ask questions," said Brig. Gen. William M. Faulkner, U.S. exercise director for Balikatan and Sagip 2010.

"People are literally dying (in these situations), that's why when we hit the ground, we need to hit the ground running," he said.