US to hold Pacific Partnership disaster relief exercise in La Union

The United States' Pacific Partnership, an annual humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) exercise, is set to be held in San Fernando, La Union from August 22 to 31, the Armed of the Philippines (AFP) said Monday.

In a statement, the AFP said the US’ multinational HADR exercise will improve the preparedness and interoperability with seven host partner nations in the Indo-Pacific, including the Philippines.

The exercise will cover HADR; medical, dental, and veterinary; as well as engineering activities.

HADR activities will include search and rescue training in mountain, urban, and water settings, as well as refreshers on basic life support, incident command system, and operations center management.

The culminating training for HADR activities will involve an earthquake-tsunami response scenario.

Medical and dental civic action programs will focus on exchanges and community education with topics on public health, infectious diseases, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, forensic dentistry, oral surgery, and diet and nutrition.

To address critical infrastructure concerns, American, Korean, and Filipino military engineers will work on some engineering projects.

“We welcome our ally and partners as we embark in another opportunity to build strong, stable, and resilient communities,” AFP public affairs office chief Lieutenant Colonel Enrico Ileto said.

“This exercise underscores our commitment to regional stability, disaster response readiness, and the well-being of every Filipino and our neighbors. With our partners, this will help us hurdle challenges by fostering goodwill and fostering safer, more resilient communities for generations to come," he added. — Joviland Rita/RSJ, GMA Integrated News