Emergency-response group Team Albay romped away with 11 heroism awards handed out by President Benigno Aquino himself during the recent Bakas Parangal rites at the AFP Headquarters in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City.
The Bakas or Bayaning Likas Awards recognize individuals and groups for their initiatives in helping alleviate the sufferings of victims of the recent monsoon storms and floods throughout the country and those who assisted in the search-and-rescue efforts for former Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robfedo and his two companions in Masbate.
In a statement, Albay Gov. Joey Salceda led the awardees of four individuals and seven teams, all under the Team Albay — Office of Civil Defense V (OCD-V). The honors included Bakas Parangal sa Kabayanihan and Bakas Parangal sa Kadakilaan. Another award, the Bakas Parangal sa Kagitingan was conferred on those who helped in the search and recovery of Robredo and company whose Piper Seneca plane crashed off the Masbate coast last month.
Aquino himself keynoted the awards program that was attended by guests and ranking government officials, among them Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and Undersecretary Benito Ramos, National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council executive director.
Team Albay is a group of trained experts in disaster search and rescue, as well as medical and sanitation operations organized by Salceda three years ago for disaster response in his province. The group has since then crossed boundaries to help disaster victims of serious calamities that strike anywhere in the country.
The team had gone to many missions in the past two years, bringing along with it the now-popular water filtration machine donated by the Spanish government, providing potable waters to disaster victims aside from conducting search and rescue, medical services and post disaster consultations.
Salceda was awarded Bakas Parangal sa Kabayanihan along with OCD-V director Raffy Alejandro, Dr. Cedric Daep and Dr. Abundio Nuñez of the Albay Provincial Safety and Emergency Management Office, and Philippine Navy Capt. Rommel Jason Galang, Lt. Cdr. Darwin Nieva, Lt. JG. Rey Argee Jabonette, Lt. JG. Brian Lara and Ens. Ere Mon Duruin.
Group recipients of the Bakas Parangal sa Kadakilaan were Albay OCD-V with Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council component and Albay Province, the Water and Sanitation Team under Dr. Nats Rempillo, the Medical Tarn under Dr. Raborar, the Naval Forces Southern Luzon Command, the Tactical Operations Goup 5 and the Bureau of fire Protection Special Rescue Unit.
Honored with the Bakas Parangal sa Kagitingan award were divers; Lt. JG. Jabonette, EN1 Willy B. Bulawan, BM1 Victor R. Escalante and ETW Arnulfo Barcellano.