Dugo para sa Puso, a Valentine's Day blood drive

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) OIC-Deputy Administrator for Corporate Communications Armie Llamas joins personnel of the Regional Maritime Unit-3 led by PLtCol Sami Lorenzo RMU3 and Olongapo Maritime Police Station chief Police Lt. Mariel Cuizon for a photo souvenir during a bloodletting activity held on Valentine’s Day, February 14 at the Subic Gym of Subic Bay Freeport.

The SBMA and the Philippine Red Cross-Olongapo Chapter spearheaded the bloodletting drive dubbed "Dugo para sa Puso”, which aims to augment the blood requirements in the City of Olongapo and nearby areas in the Freeport.

 

Other organizations such as the Rotary Club of Subic Pearl, Philippine Navy, Batas Eagles Club, and different SBMA departments supported the said activity. (MPD-SBMA)

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Red Cross medical tent to augment Subic hospital’s Covid-19 capacity

The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) has donated a fully air-conditioned medical tent to the Baypointe Hospital here to serve as an extension Covid-19 isolation and treatment unit for possible spillover cases of the highly infectious disease. 

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the medical tent was installed on Wednesday at the emergency admittance area of Baypointe, the only hospital in the Subic Freeport Zone that admits Covid cases from Olongapo City, Bataan and Zambales.

“We have here the hospital tent from the Philippine Red Cross that we hope can help Baypointe catch up with the growing numbers of Covid cases. This tent is fully air-conditioned, has 10 to 20-bed capacity, and will hopefully augment our needs as of this time,” Eisma said on Thursday.

“We are truly grateful that Senator (Richard) Gordon never misses on giving Subic his priority, as we fight a collective battle against this pandemic,” Eisma added. Gordon, who was the first SBMA chairman, is now chairman of the Philippine Red Cross.

Eisma said the medical tent is invaluable to Subic because of the rising number of Covid cases in the locality. “We have to be proactive. We have to be ready. We will not wait until we cannot catch up anymore,” she stressed.

“I will not want Subic to be ill-prepared for what may happen. So, this is one of the first steps that we are doing to make sure that we are ready should the pandemic escalate even more,” Eisma added.

According to Dr. Erlinda Alconga, Baypointe’s expert on infectious diseases, more patients are seeking admittance at the hospital because they have Covid pneumonia, with a total of 68 currently in the waiting list.

“Before our bed capacity for Covid cases was only 29, but now we attend to about 40 to 50 patients at Baypointe,” she added.

Baypointe director Dr. Felicisimo de Castro, meanwhile, said the medical tent is a very welcome gift from the Red Cross and Senator Richard Gordon, who is Red Cross chairman.

“We thank the community for giving support and we acknowledge with much appreciation the help that SBMA is providing us. This will go a long way in alleviating the desperate plight of our patients who wait outside just to be able to gain admission in our hospital, which is now full to capacity,” De Castro also said.

Both Alconga and Eisma also stressed their call for Subic stakeholders to observe minimum health protocols and to get vaccinated.

As of Thursday, August 19, the neighboring city of Olongapo has reported a total of 406 active Covid-19 cases and a total of 3,416 confirmed cases since the pandemic began early last year.

The neighboring province of Zambales, which has shifted back its quarantine status early this week to General Community Quarantine (GCQ) with heightened restrictions, has reported a total of 644 active cases, among the total confirmed cases of 5,156.

On the other hand, the province of Bataan, which is under Extreme Community Quarantine (ECQ), has reported a total of 2,519 active cases, out of the total 15,721 confirmed cases. (MPD-SBMA)

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Covid-19 saliva test now available at Subic Freeport

The saliva test, a more comfortable and affordable alternative to the nasal swabbing method for Covid-19 testing, is now available at the Subic Bay Freeport under a joint project of the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the PRC on Monday (Feb. 8) opened a saliva collection facility at the PRC-SBMA Covid-19 Testing Center near the Subic Bay Freeport main gate for its Saliva-Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (Saliva RT-PCR) testing program.

The Red Cross rolled out the saliva testing program in Manila late last month following approval by the Department of Health (DOH) of the use of saliva as an alternative specimen for RT-PCR testing.

“It’s just like the nasopharyngeal swabbing procedure in terms of efficacy because it uses the same system, which is the RT-PCR,” Eisma explained during the project launch.

“But while others find the nasopharyngeal swabbing somewhat painful, this one is not because it’s non-invasive. To top it all, it’s way cheaper than the swab test,” she added.

The saliva test, which is touted to be a quick and safe alternative for diagnosing Covid-19 infections, requires patients to spit through a tube into a small specimen collection container. About 1-2 mL of saliva is needed for testing.

The procedure is also said to be safer because there is less risk of exposure between the patients and the health care workers collecting the samples.

Moreover, processing of the sample in the testing machine takes less time, thus allowing for the release of test results in about 6 to 12 hours, the PRC said.

The PRC also noted that the saliva test costs from P1,500 to P2,000 and has an accuracy rate of 98.23%, while the nasal swab test, which is 99% accurate, costs from P3,800 to P5,000.

To date, only the Red Cross saliva RT-PCR test to date has been approved by the DOH as a saliva-based testing method to detect Covid-19 infections, the PRC added.

SBMA Deputy Administrator for Health and Safety Ronnie Yambao said there are now two booths dedicated for saliva testing at PRC-SBMA Covid-19 Testing Center, although the testing facility would continue to accommodate those who would prefer the nasopharyngeal swabbing procedure.

Those who want to take the saliva test here should deposit a P2,000 payment to the Philippine Red Cross account number 0132062464009 at Security Bank in Mandaluyong EDSA, and then email proof of payment and details of the person who will get tested to saliva.olongapo@redcross.org.ph.

In response, the Red Cross will email an online registration link for the customer to get the Retrieval Code, which must be presented to at the PRC-SBMA Covid-19 Testing Center in order to proceed with the collection of saliva specimen. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTO:

Emergency Medical Services staff Marcelo Macariola demonstrates the collection of saliva specimen for testing during the launch of the saliva testing facility in Subic on Monday. Also in photo are SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma, PRC-Olongapo Administrator Vilma T. Feji, and SBMA Deputy Administrator for Health and Safety Ronnie Yambao.

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Subic Freeport Covid-19 testing center now open to public

Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test, which is considered the gold standard in the accurate diagnosis of the new coronavirus disease (Covid-19), is now available to residents in the Subic Bay Freeport area and neighboring communities.

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the public may now avail of RT-PCR testing here even as employees of the Subic agency undergo testing on a staggered schedule.

“We are now close to completing the testing of SBMA frontline workers, and so we are calling on business locators and other stakeholders in Subic to get their frontliners tested, too, and for residents from nearby areas to also avail of RT-PCR for their peace of mind now that testing is conveniently available here in Subic,” Eisma said.

“The 3T’s — testing, tracing, and treating — is still the best way to beat Covid-19 and to keep our community safe and conducive to business,” she added.

The testing center, which was established jointly by the SBMA and the Philippine Red Cross (PRC), is located at the former Wimpy's Restaurant near the Freeport main gate and is manned by technicians trained on taking swab samples.
Under the RT-PCR test, actual swabs from the nose or throat of patients are used to determine the actual presence of the coronavirus and if a person is currently infected.

The swab samples are then forwarded for analysis at the Red Cross molecular laboratory in Subic’s Naval Magazine area, which is capable of doing 2,000 tests daily.

Eisma said that to avail of the test, interested parties may register via email at swabtest.sbmaprc@gmail.com and pay a testing fee of P4,000 through any of the following bank accounts: Philippine Red Cross, Account No. 151-7-151524342 at Metrobank (Port Area Manila Branch), or Philippine Red Cross, Account No. 00-453-0190938 at Banco de Oro (Port Area Manila Branch).

Then applicants would have to email proof of payment (scanned or screenshot) along with applicants’ name to treasury.office4@redcross.org.ph, forms@redcross.org.ph, and swbtest.sbmaprc@gmail.com.

Following verification of payment, the confirmed testing schedule will be emailed to the applicants who should report at the SBMA-PRC Swabbing Facility on the scheduled testing date.

Eisma said that results of the RT-PCR Covid-19 test will be available in four days.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Red Cross announced on Sunday the launching of a COVID Samaritan program to ensure that poor people who could not afford the Covid-19 testing fees could get tested.

Senator Richard J. Gordon, PRC chairman and CEO, reiterated the need to ramp up testing to ensure victory over Covid-19 and added that the COVID Samaritan program would help those who could not afford the testing fee with funds donated for the program.

“Kailangan ma-test ang mga tao para manalo tayo laban sa Covid. This way, carriers can be separated from those who are not infected and they can be cured. At maaari na ring makabalik sa trabaho kapag na-test. Kaya sinimulan namin ang programang ito para pati ‘yung mga hindi kayang magbayad, maaaring makapagpa-test,” he said.

Gordon disclosed that the Automobile Association of the Philippines has donated €50,000 or almost P2.8-million for the COVID Samaritan program. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTO:

Workers pass by the SBMA-PRC Swabbing Facility near the Subic Bay Freeport main gate. SBMA Chairman Wilma T. Eisma has urged Subic stakeholders and residents from nearby communities to avail of RT-PCR testing services offered at the facility. (MPD-SBMA)

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Covid-19 testing center opens in Subic Bay Freeport

A molecular laboratory capable of doing 2,000 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests daily has formally opened in the Subic Bay Freeport under a joint project between the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).

Senator Richard Gordon, who is PRC chairman, inspected the laboratory last Friday, along with SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma and Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) president and CEO Vince Dizon, who has been designated deputy chief implementer of the government’s Covid-19 response.

“The Subic lab is already open. We need to have the employees of SBMA tested first, then those of the locators, and then the public in Olongapo Zambales and Bataan,” Gordon said in a media briefing after the inspection.

“Our aim is to get our people tested so that we can immediately isolate those who are affected and prevent the non-carriers from acquiring the virus. We really have to ramp up testing to ensure victory over Covid,” he added.

PRC’s Subic laboratory located at the former naval magazine area here will be working in tandem with the SBMA’s swabbing center, which is strategically located at the Freeport main gate.

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the SBMA will assign up to 15 swabbers in the facility to accommodate samples from nearby communities and provinces.

“Zambales is already sending swab samples for testing at the PRC labs in Manila. Now, Subic offers a nearer alternative that would also hasten the process and make the results available earlier,” she said.

Eisma explained that she has already enjoined neighboring local government units in Zambales and Bataan to have their residents tested in conjunction with the PRC-SBMA mass-testing project.

The Red Cross testing facility in the Freeport is equipped with an automated RNA extraction machine that can run 90 samples per hour, and two PCR machines that can each process 1,000 samples a day for a daily turnout of 2,000 tests.

Application for testing will be screened and processed through the Red Cross hotline 1158, and will cost P3,500 per test. Gordon said the minimal cost will defray the costs of equipment, manpower and supplies, and other overhead needed for the mass testing program.

Gordon said the PRC laboratory in Subic, combined with a similar laboratory that PRC had set up with the BCDA at the Clark Freeport Zone, will help step up the government’s mass testing program.

“We can do a total of 4,000 tests per day in the two new facilities, which will enable us to run an overall total of 16,000 tests a day,” Gordon said.

He said that as more laboratories are being prepared, the Red Cross will be able to increase its overall capacity to 32,000 tests a day by next week.

Aside from the testing laboratory and the swabbing center, the Subic Bay Freeport is also home to two Covid-19 care and isolation facilities that the SBMA has set up at the Subic Gym and the former Leciel Hotel.

Eisma said these projects had been put up with the help of donations from investor companies in the Subic Freeport and other private groups and individuals from all over the country. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTOS:
[1] Sen. Richard Gordon and SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma inspect the PRC molecular laboratory on Friday. The PRC lab has the capacity to complete 2,000 tests daily.

[2] Sen. Richard Gordon observes how a medical technician takes a swab sample at the SBMA swabbing center on Friday

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Bio-molecular labs in Subic, Clark to open this week

Philippine Red Cross Chairman and CEO Senator Richard Gordon on Sunday said two bio-molecular laboratories in Subic and Clark will open within the week to boost the PRC’s testing capacity amid the rising cases of COVID-19 in the country.

In a statement, Gordon said the two laboratories passed the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine’s proficiency test on Friday and were accredited as certified COVID-19 testing centers.

The Subic laboratory, which is located at the PRC Logistics and Training Center inside the Subic Bay Freeport Zone and the Clark laboratory, which is located at Clark Freeport Zone, are capable of running up to 2,000 tests per day.

“This is a very welcome development. We can do a total of 4,000 tests per day in the two new facilities, which will enable us to run an overall total of 16,000 tests a day. And with the hotel capabilities of both Subic and Clark, repatriation flights for overseas Filipino workers can now be directed to the airports in the two cities,” Gordon said.

Aside from the facilities in Subic and Clark, he said the PRC will open up eight other testing centers in Batangas, Laguna, Mandaue City, Isabela, Cagayan de Oro, Zamboanga City, Bacolod City, and Surigao.

The PRC will also add ten more PCRs in the Port Area molecular lab, which will enable the agency to conduct a total of 46,000 tests per day.

“According to the WHO (World Health Organization), we have to test 13 percent of the population so we can determine the disease’s positivity rate. For Metro Manila, alone, that would be 1.7-million and it would take ten months or 308 days to test 13 percent of its population at 46,000 tests a day. So we really have to ramp up testing to ensure victory over COVID,” Gordon said.

So far, the Philippines recorded 25,392 cases of COVID-19, including 1,074 deaths and 5,706 recoveries. (Ma. Angelica Garcia, DVM, GMA News)

PHOTO:

The Subic laboratory is located at the PRC Logistics and Training Center inside the Subic Bay Freeport Zone.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/742575/bio-molecular-labs-in-subic-clark-to-open-this-week/story/

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LGUs urged to join SBMA-Red Cross mass testing program

The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) has urged local government units (LGUs) adjacent to the Subic Bay Freeport Zone (SBFZ) to join its mass testing program to detect new coronavirus disease (Covid-19) infections in the locality.

In a letter sent to LGU executives on Tuesday, April 28, SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the Subic agency has partnered with the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) to provide Covid-19 mass testing services at minimal cost to residents and stakeholders of SBFZ and its surrounding communities.

The letter was sent to the eight LGUs contiguous to the SBFZ: Olongapo City; Subic, Castillejos, San Marcelino and San Antonio in Zambales; and Morong, Hermosa and Dinalupihan in Bataan.

Eisma said the SBMA-PRC mass testing program will be open to the public, although priority will be given to suspected and probable Covid-19 cases, as well as frontliners in the SBFZ, SBMA employees, and SBFZ residents.

“In this regard, SBMA is offering to partner with (LGUs) for the Covid-19 mass testing of (their) constituents at a cost of P3,500 per test, inclusive of test kits,” Eisma said. Similar polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests cost from P8,000 to P9,000 when administered at private hospitals in Manila, it was learned.

Eisma said that for this project, the SBMA has retrofitted two buildings at the Subic Bay Freeport main gate to house at least six telephone booth-type swabbing centers where trained health workers will take swab samples from patients. The collected samples will then be validated and taken to the PRC Molecular Laboratory at Subic’s Naval Magazine Area for testing.

The Red Cross testing facility in the Freeport will be equipped with an automated RNA extraction machine that can run 90 samples per hour, and two PCR machines that can each process 1,000 samples a day for a daily turnout of 2,000 tests.

The mass testing project here is the brainchild of Senator Richard Gordon, who is chairman of Philippine Red Cross. Gordon had designated Subic and the nearby Clark Freeport as PRC Covid-19 testing centers for the Central Luzon region.

Gordon had earlier stressed the exclusive use of the PCR testing method because it is more reliable and accurate than the rapid testing method, which still requires a confirmatory test.

In her letter to LGUs, Eisma said that while the PRC will require an advance of P5 million that would cover an initial 1,420 tests, the LGUs can recoup their expenses, as the same will be covered by the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. in line with Philhealth Circular No. 2020-10.

She added that the SBMA is willing to explore a scheme whereby LGUs could advance the cost required by PRC from the 2% LGU shares to be collected by the SBMA from taxes paid by Subic Freeport locators. The SBMA has been releasing LGU shares twice a year since 2011, with an average release of P116.68 million each semester for the eight communities adjacent to the Subic Bay Freeport.

Eisma said the SBMA won’t impose any fee on top of the P3,500 cost that the Red Cross will charge to defray the costs of equipment, manpower and supplies needed for the mass testing program.

She added that at the moment, applications for Covid-19 mass testing will be screened through the Red Cross hotline 1158, although the SBMA may put up a similar hotline to help hasten processing.

Under Republic Act 11469, or the Bayanihan to Heal As One Act, which declared a state of national emergency in face of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Philippine Red Cross was identified as the primary humanitarian agency that is auxiliary to the government in the fight against the virus outbreak.

Eisma said the SBMA-PRC Covid-19 mass testing program will help authorities in the Greater Subic Bay-Bataan-Olongapo-Zambales area “get accurate data on the exact prevalence of Covid-19, and identify with specificity the individuals that we must treat and isolate, and the areas we have to more intensely quarantine.”

“In the same manner, this accurate and exact data will help us decide on whether we can safely ease up restrictions and implement the ‘new normal’ guidelines and protocols in order to get our local economy running again,” Eisma added. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTOS:

Workers prepare the SBMA swabbing centers at the Subic Bay Freeport main gate for the Covid-19 mass testing program in the greater Subic Bay area

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Covid-19 mass testing in Subic Freeport begins early May

A mass testing program to detect new coronavirus disease (Covid-19) infections in the greater Subic Bay Freeport area is expected to begin here early next month under a partnership between the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the PRC is putting up a laboratory at the Naval Magazine area in this Freeport and expects to receive testing equipment by April 29 and accreditation by the Department of Health (DOH) thereafter.

“Under this schedule we expect to begin mass testing here in the first week of May at the earliest,” Eisma said.

On Sunday, Eisma and PRC Secretary General Elizabeth Zavalla inspected the PRC Molecular Laboratory at the Naval Magazine area here, a project approved by PRC Chairman and Senator Richard Gordon at the behest of the SBMA chief.

According to Zavalla, the equipment for the state of the art laboratory will include an automated RNA extraction machine that can run 90 samples per hour, as well as two polymerase chain reaction (PCR) machines that can each process 1,000 samples a day for a daily turnout of 2,000 tests.

Zavalla said the Red Cross is only using the PCR testing method because it is more reliable and accurate.

She added that the DOH’s Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM, the government’s lead agency in the prevention and control of infectious diseases, would have to inspect the facility prior to operation.

Eisma said the mass testing program will be open to the public, but suspected and probable cases (previously known respectively as persons under monitoring, or PUMs, and persons under investigation, or PUIs) will be the priority.

“Frontline workers in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, SBMA employees, as well as Freeport residents will also be prioritized, but we will also reach out to local government units (LGUs) in the neighboring communities of Olongapo City, Zambales and Bataan so that their constituents can benefit from the program,” she added.

Eisma also pointed out that the SBMA is working out a scheme with the PRC so that the public can also use the Red Cross hotline 1158 in making appointments for testing.

To facilitate the mass testing program, the SBMA will put up swabbing centers at Freeport main gate area for the collection of samples for testing.

“Once the samples are collected, these will be validated and sent to the Red Cross laboratory for testing, and the results could be obtained in about two days,” Eisma said.

The SBMA pushed for the mass testing program the other week as the call for mass testing resounded widely.
Eisma said earlier that mass testing would provide “a good reading of the prevalence of the outbreak with the end-view of safely lifting the ECQ in order to get the Subic businesses running again.”

“If we don’t undertake mass-testing, we’d be fighting Covid-19 blindly. We have to get a better grasp of the situation so that we can act accordingly,” Eisma added.

The SBMA has been initiating solutions to protect the local community from the virus threat. Aside from the mass testing program, the Subic agency also established two care and isolation facilities at the Subic Gym and the former Leciel Hotel for use in case of a surge in Covid-19 cases. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTOS:

[1] The Philippine Red Cross Molecular Laboratory will house the equipment for Covid-19 mass testing in the Subic Bay Freeport.

[2] SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma and PRC Secretary-General Elizabeth Zavalla inspect the Philippine Red Cross Molecular Laboratory in the Subic Bay Freeport on Sunday.

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SBMA eyeing Covid-19 mass-testing facility

After putting up two care and isolation facilities to help protect the local community from the new coronavirus disease (Covid-19), the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) now seeks to establish here a mass-testing facility that can carry out up to 2,000 tests a day.

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the agency will implement the mass-testing project in partnership with the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) “so that we can get a good grasp of the situation and act accordingly.”

“The testing will be open to the public, although the suspected and probable cases (previously known respectively as persons under monitoring, or PUMs, and persons under investigation, or PUIs) will be the priority,” Eisma said.

“We shall also coordinate with PhilHealth for the mechanics because they’re supposed to provide free coverage for indigent patients, but others would have to pay at cost,” she added.

Under the plan, the SBMA will put up at least two telephone booth-type swabbing centers at the Subic Bay Freeport main gate, where health workers will collect swab samples from patients.

“Once the samples are collected, these will be validated and sent to the Red Cross logistics and training center at the Naval Magazine area for testing,” Eisma said.

She added that the PRC testing facility is now being built to house testing equipment that include an automated RNA extraction machine that can run 90 samples per hour, as well as two polymerase chain reaction (PCR) machines that can complete up to a combined total of 2,000 tests a day.

Senator Richard Gordon, who is chairman of the Philippine Red Cross, said the PRC is using polymerase chain reaction-based test kits to ensure accuracy.

The SBMA sounded out this plan as public clamor for mass-testing resonated widely, with experts saying that it could further optimize the government’s quarantine strategy and prevent further loss of lives.

Locally, Eisma said that mass-testing would also help the government and the Freeport authority in particular, “to get a good reading of the prevalence of the outbreak with the end-view of safely lifting the ECQ in order to get the Subic businesses running again.”

“If we don’t undertake mass-testing, we’d be fighting Covid-19 blindly. We have to get a better grasp of the situation so that we can act accordingly,” Eisma added.

The SBMA has been initiating solutions to the growing health risks that the local community faced because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Before this, the Subic agency established two care and isolation facilities at the Subic Gym and the former Leciel Hotel using its own funds and some donations from private companies, civic organizations and concerned individuals.

These facilities will be used in the event that positive cases exceeded the capacity at the Baypointe Hospital in the Subic Freeport, which has admitted patients from Zambales, Olongapo City and Bataan.

As of April 18, Zambales has reported nine confirmed cases of Covid-19 with two recoveries, while Olongapo listed nine cases with one recovery, and Bataan province 80 cases with 15 recoveries. (MPD-SBMA)

PHOTOS:

Two Covid-19 swabbing booths are being prepared for the mass-testing program of the SBMA. The booths have glass partitions to separate the health worker who will take swab samples from the patient who will stay outside the booth.

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Gordon opens PRC training center in Subic Freeport

Senator Richard Gordon presided over the inauguration here on Sunday of a training center that would provide vocational education to residents from disaster-stricken areas in the country.

Gordon, who is also chairman of the Philippine Red Cross (PRC), said the training center is a joint undertaking of PRC and the Kingdom of Bahrain’s Royal Charity Organization (RCO).

Gordon, along with RCO Secretary General H.E. Dr. Mustafa Alsayed, led the ribbon-cutting and turnover ceremony for the facility located at the former Naval Magazine area of this free port.

The PRC has previously established its logistics center for local and international disaster-response operations in the same area.

According to Gordon, the vocational training center will help ensure sustainable growth through education to victims of disaster-stricken areas in the country.

“The center will provide people with market-driven skills and training so they can secure steady, well-paying jobs,” Gordon said.

He added that the center is part of the recovery projects that Bahrain’s RCO had promised to fund to help improve the lives of victims of Typhoon Haiyan, locally known as Yolanda, which devastated several parts of the country in November 2013.

Alsayed, meanwhile, was ecstatic over the opening of the Subic vocation training center and expressed hope that it will produce students who will use their education to uplift their calamity-stricken community.

Gordon and Alsayed also inaugurated a similar vocational training center in Tacloban City a day before the Subic launch. Tacloban was the community worst-hit by Haiyan.

Gordon said these centers will offer training courses in electrical installation and maintenance, plumbing technology, carpentry, masonry, commercial cooking, bread and pastry production, seafarers rating, and a finishing course for call center agents.

The training centers each have four rooms that consist of two workshop rooms, an equipment storage area and one administration office. They both have a capacity to seat 30 to 40 students at a time, or from 15 to 20 students for laboratory sessions.

According to PRC Secretary General Oscar Palabyab, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority will also play a big role on the project, since the agency will be accrediting the students who will graduate from the vocational courses.

“This is also an expansion of our humanitarian service, as well as our relationship with different partners,” Palabyab added.

Palabyab said the PRC training center in the Subic Bay Freeport was constructed at around P7.8 million, while the facility in Tacloban costs around P5.3 million. (JRR/MPD-SBMA)


PHOTOS:

[1] Sen. Richard Gordon, chairman of the Philippine Red Cross, receives a symbolic key to the PRC Training Center in the Subic Bay Freeport from Dr. Mustafa Alsayed, secretary general of the Royal Charity Organization (ROC) of the Kingdom of Bahrain, during the recent inauguration and turnover ceremony of the facility that was financed by the RCO. (AMD/MPD-SBMA)

[2] Officials of the Philippine Red Cross headed by Sen. Richard Gordon, and the Royal Charity Organization (RCO) of the Kingdom of Bahrain headed by Dr. Mustafa Alsayed, link arms in a symbol of unity following the recent inauguration and turnover ceremony of the Philippine Red Cross Training Center in the Subic Bay Freeport, which was financed by the RCO. (AMD/MPD-SBMA)

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RPEI-SBMA-PRC team trains Subic health workers on emergency response

Fifty health workers from the remote communities in the municipality of Subic, Zambales on Friday completed capability trainings on emergency response-related courses at the Travelers Hotel here.

The two-day training was sponsored by the Redondo Peninsula Energy, Inc. (RPEI) and in cooperation with the Philippine Red Cross (PRC), the municipality of Subic and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority.

Reynalita Santana, vice-president and External Affairs head Meralco PowerGen, said the training was specially designed for Rural Health Unit officers, Municipal Health Workers, Barangay Health Workers, Barangay Nutrition Scholars, who are detailed in areas that has limited access to transportation and communication.

Most of the participants came from Sitio Nagbayukan, Nagyantok, Nagtulong and Sampaloc, all coastal communities of barangay Cawag in Redondo Peninsula which are accessible only by one-hour boat ride from Subic town. Others were from barangay Matain, Calapacuan, and Pamatawan.

“They are dedicated workers who are committed to help the residents, specially the children, to be healthy and safe, though far from the access to electricity, communications or even transportation,” Santana noted.

She added that it is so even important that they receive refresher course or new knowledge that could help them familiarize and improve their skills and to apply them effectively in time of emergency.

The training included lectures and discussions on Emergency First Aid by Jeffrey Rodejo, RN, and Hazel Jane Quintero, RN, both certified instructors from the PRC; Communication Skills by Brian Bagtas, RN, of SBMA Public Health and Safety Department; and Disaster Preparedness by Jared Radovan of Baypointe Hospital.

The activity also included “Usapang Kalusugan,” a dialogue between Dr. Solomon Jacalne, head, SBMA PHSD; R. Leonardo Afable Jr., head, Subic Municipal Health Office; Mary Grace Molina and Maria Trinidad Gallardo of Subic RHU, where programs on how to improve health services in the communities and cooperation between RPE and LGUs were discussed.

RP Energy is the developer of an environment-friendly and state-of-the-art 600-MW Circulating-Fluidized-Bed coal-fired power plant in Subic.

Meanwhile, SBMA Administrator Wilma Eisma lauded RP Energy for initiating the training for the community health workers of Redondo Peninsula and other remote communities in Subic.

“It is very important that residents in our coastal communities, especially those from areas where transportation and communication are lacking, have a team of trained and skillful health workers who would respond in case of emergency,” said.

She said SBMA may have the best land and sea search and rescue group, but still, educating the stakeholders on various phases of disaster, such as, response, management and rehabilitation would minimize the effect of any unwarranted situation.

She noted that SBMA, through its Fire and Law Enforcement Departments, has continuous education programs that involve students and teachers, workers and investors and residents in earthquake and fire drills.

“Being alert and knowing what to do during emergency will always keep us all safe,” she said. (RAV/MPD-SBMA)

PHOTO:

Fifty health workers from the remote communities in the municipality of Subic, Zambales completed the two-day capability trainings on emergency response-related courses at the Travelers’ Hotel sponsored by the Redondo Peninsula Energy (RP Energy) and in cooperation with the Philippine Red Cross (PRC), the municipality of Subic and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA). (AMD/MPD-SBMA)

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Subic Bay commemorates the 100th birth anniversary of Olongapo's first mayor

Olongapenos and Subic Bay volunteers gathered in this free port Tuesday (January 17) to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of Mayor James Leonard (Jimmy) Gordon, Olongapo's first elected mayor.

Simultaneous wreath-laying activities led by the children of the late mayor were held in four significant areas in Subic Bay and Olongapo City: Marikit Park, led by the Balikatan Ladies; Kalalake Elementary School; Gordon Park/Kalaklan; and Tappan Park, site of the hospital where Mayor Jimmy Gordon was born.

A program followed shortly at the Riviera wharf where the M/V Susitna, the newly acquired ship of the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) is docked.

Aside from the Gordon family led by PRC Governor and Senator Richard J Gordon, also attending the celebration were officials of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) led by Chairman Martin Diño and Administrator Amy Eisma, as well as free port investors.

Socio-civic groups such as the Jaycees of Olongapo City, Rotary Club of Olongapo City, James L. Gordon Council of the Olongapo City Boy Scout of the Philippines, BALIKATAN Ladies of Olongapo Movement, SUGPO, Businessmen/Civic groups participants; Philippine Red Cross Olongapo City Chapter Board, Staff and 143 volunteers; PRC Board of Governors; and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies; and officials and volunteers of the Bagumbayan Volunteers for a New Philippines Party also attended the celebration.

Mayor James Gordon was born on January 17, 1917 of an American father, John Jacob Gordon, and a Filipina mother, Veronica Tagle Gordon. He was Mayor of Olongapo City from December 30, 1963 to February 20, 1967.

Instead of electing American Citizenship and residing in the United States like his four brothers, he chose to stay in the Philippines as a Filipino Citizen. He raised his children as Filipino Citizens and brought them up according to Filipino values;

Mayor Jimmy Gordon, known as the Father of Olongapo, led the move to free Olongapo from the United States (US). When the rest of the Philippine had been declared independent of the US on July 4, 1946, Olongapo remained under US Government jurisdiction having been declared a US Naval Reservation in the early 1900s).

Gordon, though an American himself, having an American father, could not stomach the strict military regulations that limited the movements of the residents of Olongapo. He exposed and fought the abuses and harassments suffered by Olongapo residents under US military rule. He was also like David trying to defeat Goliath, which symbolized the rampant corruption and abuses in the governing authority. (SNL)

PHOTOS:

[1] The Gordons stand before a statue of their father, the late Mayor James Gordon, at the Tappan park inside the Subic Bay Freeport Zone. (AMD/MPD-SBMA)

[2] Philippine Red Cross Governor Senator Richard Gordon leading the tour of the bridge of the M/V Susitna as SBMA Chairman Martin Diño looks on.  (AMD/MPD-SBMA)

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LOOK: The M/V Susitna arrives in Subic Bay

The M/V Susitna, a 195-foot military prototype vessel sits atop a barge as she arrives in Subic Bay Friday afternoon (Dec. 02).

Acquired by the Philippine Red Cross, it will serve as a multi-purpose vessel for emergency units’ fast transport and landing, relief supply transport, sea rescue, mobile operations command post and also for humanitarian education and training ship.

PRC Chairman and Senator Richard J. Gordon said a ship was essential for the PRC and the Red Cross Movement, as well, in order to effectively perform its humanitarian mandate in the Philippines and the Asia Pacific Region.

"Since it is designed for direct beach landings and to operate and land cargo and passengers on unimproved areas and damaged ports and wharfs, we won’t have to go through what we have experienced during Yolanda again,” Gordon said.

Read more here: http://www.manilalivewire.com/2016/07/philippine-red-cross-acquired-the-mv-susitna-ferry-to-effectively-perform-humanitarian-duties/

Lights from the heavy load carrier BigLift Happy Star illuminate the twilight sky in Subic Bay Freeport. The carrier is tasked to lift the M/V Susitna from atop a barge and settle it down onto the waters of Subic Bay.

https://www.facebook.com/SubicBayFreeportZone/

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New PRC facility validates Subic’s importance as logistics hub

The establishment by the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) of its logistics and training center in the Subic Bay Freeport has once again validated the importance of this free port as a domestic and international logistics hub.

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Roberto Garcia pointed this out after the PRC formally inaugurated on Monday its logistics and training center at a 1.6-hectare property along the Corregidor Highway in the former Naval Magazine area here.

“Accessibility is the main factor here, and of course there is also the security aspect to it. It is just a few hours away from Manila; it is accessible by land, sea and air, and the place is as secure as it can get. That’s why the Red Cross is here,” Garcia said.

Garcia said the SBMA has allowed the PRC rent-free use of the property for 50 years.

“It’s our humble contribution to the noble mission that the Philippine Red Cross has been doing remarkably well,” he added.

PRC Chairman Richard J. Gordon, who led the inauguration ceremony on Monday, said the PRC’s Subic facility will serve as a hub for logistics support in local and international disaster response, as well as a training facility and operations center.

“We will preposition relief supplies here, both food and non-food items; also our equipment and our vehicles to facilitate prompt and efficient deployment in case of disasters, emergencies or mass casualty incidents,” Gordon said.

“We also conduct different trainings here (because) in a country with a buffet of disasters like the Philippines, we should always be prepared,” he added.

“(The facility) is also part of our tenet: Volunteers + Logistics + Information Technology = a Red Cross that is Always First, Always Ready, Always There,” Gordon also said.

The PRC facility has two warehouses, a function room that also serves as convention center, two dormitory buildings, two classrooms, and a mess hall. It will soon have a hotel and trade school.

The facility, which had its soft opening last March, has already produced its first batch of graduates for the Emergency Medical Technician and Emergency Filed Hospital courses.

During the inaugural rites, Gordon also presented Garcia a citation for the support that SBMA has extended to the PRC.

He also presented a similar award to the seven-man contingent of fire and rescue volunteers led by SBMA Fire Chief Ranny Magno, which participated in a recent rescue and relief mission in earthquake-devastated Nepal. (HEE/MPD-SBMA)

PHOTOS:

[1] SBMA Chairman Roberto V. Garcia (center) joins PRC Chairman Richard J. Gordon and members of the PRC Board of Governors inaugurating the Philippine Red Cross Logistics and Training Center in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone. The facility, which sits on a 1.6-hectare property at Subic’s Ilanin Forest, will serve as a hub of logistics support in local and international disaster response. (AMD/MPD-SBMA)

[2] SBMA Chairman Roberto V. Garcia receives a citation from PRC Chairman Richard J. Gordon and members of the PRC Board of Governors, in recognition of SBMA support of the establishment of the Philippine Red Cross Logistics and Training Center in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone. The facility, which will serve as a hub of logistics support in local and international disaster response, is located at a 1.6-hectare property that the SBMA has given for a fifty-year rent-free lease. (AMD/MPD-SBMA)

[3] SBMA Chairman Roberto V. Garcia (center) joins awardees after receiving a citation from the PRC Board of Governors for SBMA support in the establishment of the Philippine Red Cross Logistics and Training Center in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone. Among the other awardees are members of the SBMA Fire and Rescue Team, which participated in a recent rescue and relief mission in earthquake-devastated Nepal. (AMD/MPD-SBMA)

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Red Cross simulation exercises and MOA signing

[1] Philippine Red Cross volunteers evacuate "victims" of an earthquake during a simulation exercise for mass casualty incidents on Thursday at the PRC Logistics and Training Center at the Subic Bay Freeport. (AMD/MPD-SBMA)

[2] Officials of the Philippine Red Cross and Makati Medical Center sign an agreement for the deplyment of emergency field hospital personnel during disasters. From left: Dr. Gabriel Gabriel of MMC, PRC Secretary General Dr. Gwendolyn Pang, PRC Chairman Richard J. Gordon, Canadian Ambassador Neil Reeder, who served as witness, and MMC Foundation present Dr. Victor Gisbert. (AMD/MPD-SBMA)

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Corregidor, Grande Island as Ebola quarantine areas?

Corregidor and Grande Island in Subic Bay are possible quarantine areas if and when a returning overseas Filipino worker (OFW) from countries at risk is found to have been infected by the deadly Ebola virus.

“The government has got to provide the necessary quarantine areas if there is any infected person who is able to enter the Philippines from Ebola-affected countries in West Africa,” Philippine Red Cross Chairman Richard Gordon told Manila Bulletin in an interview Wednesday. Gordon, however, did not cite reasons these two areas are good Ebola quarantine areas.

According to Gordon, the Red Cross is ready and willing to provide the necessary support to health workers and help implement safety protocols.

“The Red Cross can come in already,” he said. “The bigger job will be when these people come back and they are infected. We have to be prepared to handle that.”

As far as the Red Cross is concerned, Gordon said they have to train their staff and volunteers, buy the equipment as well and train their people how to handle these.

“Many of the people who died from Ebola were not trained,” he pointed out. “Even if they have the protective equipment when they remove it they touch their face and they get sick. The mortality rate is going up also so we have to be prepared for that.”

Gordon stressed that nobody is adequately prepared for such a scenario.

“Even the United States is being surprised. They trained people still one of their people got sick,” Gordon pointed out. “In terms of training people to handle it you have to do that. The government, the Red Cross and other groups must have that.”

To prepare for the possibility of Ebola infection in the country, Gordon said he was recently in Geneva to learn about the disease and how to prevent any outbreak.

“I requested that we be trained here,” the former senator revealed. “Canada is coming here, IFRC is here, we are going to conduct training for that.” (Manila Bulletin via ph.news.yahoo.com)

https://ph.news.yahoo.com/corregidor-grande-island-ebola-quarantine-areas-195428926.html

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