IN its continuing effort to improve and speed up restoration procedures during calamities, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) Visayas and Mindanao regions recently conducted an earthquake and tsunami drill.
The activity is part of NGCP’s Integrated Disaster Action Plan that aims to ensure the readiness of all power transmission facilities expected to be affected by the passage of typhoons and other disasters like heavy rains, floods, landslides, tornadoes, fires, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunami.
The highlights of the drill last June 14 were the aerial and foot patrols, hauling and installation of the Emergency Restoration System (ERS) materials. The ERS is a lightweight material designed to expedite the erection of by-pass transmission lines and restore interrupted electrical services in the shortest possible time.
Two sets of ERS were erected to simulate the supposed restoration of the Cebu-Compostela 138-kiloVolt transmission lines with the assistance of NGCP linemen from Mindanao. The said line gang simulated the erection of an ERS in an area that is inaccessible by any vehicle.
Administrative support was provided by the rest of the non-technical functional groups in line with the activity.
A tsunami drill was also simulated at the Daan Bantayan cable terminal station. Part of the drill is ensuring continuous reporting and monitoring activities between the Overall Disaster Command Center at NGCP’s head office in Quezon City, the Regional Disaster Command Centers of Visayas and Mindanao, and the District Disaster Command Center in Banilad.
The Overall Disaster Command Center oversees and coordinates with the regional command centers on all power restoration efforts during times of disasters.
It monitors the operational status of affected transmission lines and substations and manages procedures of all NGCP units in preparing and coping with disasters.
NGCP President and chief executive officer Henry Sy Jr. said that the company’s Integrated Disaster Action Plan “aims to protect not just power transmission facilities such as lines, posts and towers physically exposed to calamities, but also the lives of our employees and the people living near our facilities.”