“Be part of the solution,” said Valenzuela City Mayor REX Gatchalian to the hundreds of Valenzuelano students, and barangay officials during the launch of the Valenzuela City  Alert Button at the Allied Local Evacuation and Emergency Response Teams (ALERT) Center grounds on July 14, 2017.

In its continuous effort in making every Valenzuelano disaster-prepared, the City Government of Valenzuela with the help of Imergex, developed a mobile application which will allow Valenzuela City residents to request emergency services with just a press of a button. It caters police, medical and fire emergencies.

By using the location provided by the user’s smartphone, the app will send a distress message to the Valenzuela City ALERT Center to inform the authorities. It also includes a feature which sends a text message to the user’s designated emergency contacts. The application is available for download for android and apple devices.

“We really intended to invite students for this launch because we know that you, millennials, want to be part of the solution,” said Mayor REX addressing the majority of the crowd. He pointed out the power of the youth to carry out responsible use of the mobile application.

Moreover, the launch was also used as a venue for the registration of the users who have downloaded the app. “After downloading the app, you must personally go to the ALERT Center to register and verify your account,” said Valenzuela City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (VCDRRMO) Head, Dr. Arnaldo Antonio. He pointed out that this process will reduce the incident of prank users because upon registration, the user will be asked for a valid government issued ID.

The event is part of the two-week long celebration of the 148^th Birth Anniversary celebration of the city’s local hero, Dr. Pio Valenzuela.