• THERESA MAE DULMAN
Bacolod City on Monday introduced a new color-tagging system for its public school facilities to classify their structural conditions following the magnitude 5.8 earthquake that struck Bogo City, Cebu.
The initiative is a result of the city-wide Rapid Damage Assessment and Needs Analysis conducted by the five inspection teams composed of personnel from the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, City Engineer’s Office (CEO), Office of the Building Official, and the Department of Education.
The color-tagging system is intended to establish a clear monitoring database for safety and future infrastructure planning.
CEO Officer-in-Charge Engr. Loben Ceballos explained the three categories: Green indicates schools are safe for occupancy; Yellow signifies structures requiring minor to major repairs or partial restriction, though safe for partial occupancy; and Red identifies buildings deemed unsafe for public use.
The assessment of 49 public schools, conducted by composite teams, found that 38 schools were classified under the Green Category, seven schools were placed under the Yellow Category, and no schools were classified under the Red Category.
The inspection result also noted that some defects were older damage potentially aggravated by the quake.
“These events exposed the old buildings in the city because of the series of earthquakes so we decided to make this an annual inspection to all classrooms and buildings owned by the government in the city,” Mayor Greg Gasataya said.
The annual inspection will be undertaken by the city on public school buildings in Bacolod, from primary to secondary, and including the Bacolod City College.*
