March has been declared as Fire Prevention Month in the Philippines due to the spike of fire incidents across the country during this time. To help spread awareness on fire safety, Chevron Philippines Inc. (CPI), marketer of Caltex fuels and lubricants recently hosted a seminar and hands-on activity for terminal emergency responders and for riders of the Harley Owners Group Manila Chapter (HOG Manila) at their Batangas Terminal.

During his seminar, Engr. Roel Mercado shared basic knowledge on fire safety. “First and foremost, with this knowledge, you are preserving life and preserving property. When there is a fire incident, you should learn the profile of the fire, and you should have an understanding of how to deal with it safely by knowing your exit points and how to use the equipment that you have on hand. This is important learning that you should put into your system at home or in the office through having drills, and this will help prevent you from panicking because you are ready.”

There were 36 HOG Manila riders and 7 back-riders who suited up and headed to the Chevron Philippines training area so that they could have a hands-on experience with the use of a fire extinguisher.

HOG Manila President and Director Yen Roxas extended his appreciation to Chevron Philippines for hosting this event. “This is very helpful for our members because they learned how to prevent fires along with the proper method on how to extinguish one. Ideally, we have fire extinguishers in our homes and offices, but we don’t really know how to use one. Here, they had actual experience with a real fire set-up.”

The mission of the riders group, Roxas says, is to be the most organized, disciplined, and safe riding group in the Philippines.

Chevron Philippines Inc. has an annual commemoration of Fire Prevention Month in coordination with the Bureau of Fire Protection as safety and disaster risk management programs have always been a priority of the company.“This year, we invited HOG Manilato partner with us so that we can help spread awareness on fire safety and help more people know how to use a fire extinguisher properly,” said Dodie Umali, Operations Manager of Chevron Batangas Terminal.

Umali adds, “At Chevron Philippines, safety is a priority. We train our people to be confident in responding to emergencies such as fires. With our mutual advocacy for safety, we partnered with HOG Manila Chapter so that they can experience how to handle a fire extinguisher in a safe environment to manage incipient or small fires. With more members of the public knowing how to put out a fire we can save more lives and property.”