THE UNIVERSITY is set to recalibrate its crisis-response protocols after flooding stranded students and personnel on campus, including possible changes that would give UST greater autonomy in deciding class suspensions during severe weather.
UST Secretary General Fr. Louie Coronel, O.P., said the University was reviewing its existing suspension guidelines after the recent onset of the monsoon season exposed the difficulty of relying on external announcements in deciding when to shift online or suspend classes.
“There are still many variables,” Coronel told the Varsitarian.
“Tulad ng habagat, kapag walang signal. Even later on, heat index. All of this, nakaka-affect siya sa ating education.”
(There are situations such as the southwest monsoon, even without a storm signal. There is also the heat index later on. All of these affect education.)
“Kaya kami, we [in the administration] met, and then very soon, we’ll be releasing a recalibrated guideline. Maraming guidelines,” he added.
(That is why the administration met, and very soon we will release recalibrated guidelines. There will be several guidelines.)
Coronel said the new protocols would account for different scenarios, including heavy rainfall, the southwest monsoon, heat index warnings, and other emergencies.
The review comes after the University suspended classes and work on Aug. 17 following heavy rainfall that caused widespread flooding on campus. The suspension was announced after the Manila city government and Malacañang ordered schools in Metro Manila and nearby provinces to shift to alternative learning modes.
Coronel said the University was also considering whether UST should eventually be allowed to suspend classes based on its own assessment of campus conditions, regardless of an announcement from the Manila city government.
“There are talks” on the matter, he said, noting that conditions at UST might differ from those in other parts of Manila.
‘We need to improve’
The flooding prompted administrators to assess the University’s response and identify gaps that need to be addressed before another crisis.
Coronel said he had instructed key offices to submit reports detailing the challenges encountered during the flooding and their recommendations for improvement.
“I do understand you are still attending to the needs,” Coronel said of the offices involved in the response. “But tell me your report, tell me the challenges that you have encountered, and then tell me your recommendation moving forward.”
Among the concerns under review are the availability of food and water, medical assistance, evacuation and rescue operations, power supply, and communication systems.
The University operated around the clock during the flooding, with personnel monitoring the campus and responding to the needs of students and employees who remained inside buildings.
Food was distributed to stranded students and personnel, while the UST Health Service, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, and UST Hospital coordinated medical assistance and the provision of doxycycline to those exposed to floodwaters.
The University also coordinated with the Manila city government and other agencies for food, medicine, rescue, and other forms of assistance.
On social media and the Varsitarian’s Facebook page, panicking parents had pleaded for food to be delivered to buildings such as Buenaventura Garcia Paredes, O.P., the multi-deck carpark, Frassati, and even to the condominium tower The One outside the campus.
Flood reached waist level in some areas
The extent of the flooding is still being assessed by the University.
Fr. Dexter Austria, O.P., head of the Facilities Management Office, said the deepest flooding recorded in previous incidents reached waist-level in areas behind the UST Hospital, along Ruaño Drive, and in front of the Quadricentennial Pavilion and St. Raymund de Peñafort Building.
Austria told the Varsitarian that the University was still assessing facilities affected by the latest flooding, particularly electrical outlets that may have been exposed to water.
Power has since been restored to the buildings, but facilities personnel continue to inspect affected areas to ensure they are safe for use.
General cleaning operations were also ongoing and were expected to continue until Wednesday or Thursday, Austria said.
The cleanup includes flushing mud from campus streets and collecting waste left by the floodwaters for proper disposal.
UST suspended classes on Tuesday (Aug. 18) and Wednesday (Aug. 19) and announced a shift to online classes on Thursday (Aug. 20) and Saturday (Aug. 22). There are no classes on Aug. 21, Friday, Ninoy Aquino Day.
Preparing beyond flooding
Coronel said the revised protocols should not be limited to flooding or inclement weather.
“This is only inclement weather,” he said. “Paano kung strike? Paano kung heat index? Paano kung, huwag naman po Lord, earthquake?”
(This is only inclement weather. What if there is a strike? What if there is a heat-index emergency? What if, God forbid, there is an earthquake?)
He said the University must prepare for different emergencies and establish corresponding response measures.
The crisis committee and its subcommittees were expected to further discuss the recommendations and establish more regular coordination mechanisms.
Coronel said he also wanted the University to improve its capacity to operate during disruptions in communication systems.
The flooding highlighted the need for contingency measures for food and water, particularly when large numbers of students and personnel are stranded on campus.
Coronel said the University was also studying scenarios in which emergencies occur outside regular school days or affect thousands of students, academic personnel, support staff, and maintenance workers at the same time.
“We need to put as a variable itong mga nangyari last time,” he said.
(We need to take what happened last time into account as a variable.)
The University is also expected to review onboarding and other scheduled activities as it balances the need to complete academic and student programs with the possibility of further weather-related disruptions.
Coronel said consultations with academic units and student leaders would form part of the process.
For the secretary general, the flooding showed that while the University was able to mobilize resources and assist those stranded, gaps remain.
“May ginawa tayo. Pero kailangan pong may ma-improve,” Coronel said.
(We did something, but there are still areas we need to improve on.)
