Authorities on Thursday have deployed a special loudspeaker that could be heard within one kilometer to help evacuate residents, especially in risky areas in Samar province.
The Philippine Army has dispatched the MLX4, its special loudspeaker, along with a seven-man team who will operate the equipment, in regions that will be affected by Typhoon Yolanda.
The MLX4 loudspeaker, which runs on a 12-volt battery can, last for 12 hours, authorities said. It can be used for announcing warning orders to residents living near coastal areas for preemptive evacuation and in crowd control at designated evacuation centers.
The Army, through its Civil Military Operations Group (CMOG), deployed the equipment upon the request of the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Center (NDRRMC).
Preemptive evacuations in Samar began on Thursday afternoon as Typhoon “Yolanda” approached for a landfall, National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) Executive Director Eduardo del Rosario said.
Del Rosario said families living in flood-prone, landslide-prone and coastal areas were taken batch by batch by military and police trucks to evacuation centers where structures can withstand strong winds.
However, he has yet to announce how many families have been moved to safer areas.
Del Rosario also declined to give any forecast about possible destruction Yolanda that may incur in the country.
He emphasized though that all local government units have been told earlier to make necessary preparations such as preemptively evacuating residents to safer grounds.
For his part, Capt. Anthony Bacus, officer in charge of the Army’s Public Affairs Office (PAO), said enough number of soldiers have deployed along the path of Yolanda for any eventuality with disaster response and rescue teams in place.
“Disaster response units of the different Army Divisions nationwide, particularly in the provinces expected to be hit by the super typhoon, will be put on red alert status so that they could immediately respond to any exigencies,” Bacus said.
“The Philippine Army is going to mobilize all its available resources in order to help avoid casualties and minimize damages that may be caused by this super typhoon.
Resources like trucks and other rescue equipment will be of great help for the efficient implementation of disaster response operations. Training of Army soldiers can also be instrumental to support the needs of local government units,” Bacus added.
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/74348/listen-or-die--army-deploys-loudspeaker-to-help-with-preemptive-evacuation-in-samar
The Philippine Army has come a long way in developing its own loudspeaker system. I seem to remember seeing a rudimentary prototype loudspeaker during an exercise back in the late 1990s. At the time, I think Butch Regencia and some his folks at the PSYOP/CMO school were responsible for developing the initial system.
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