06 August 2018: Torrential Southwest Monsoon rains in Northern and Central Luzon in the Philippines have affected over two million people and led to the evacuation of 560,000 people from their homes due to the threat of flooding and landslides.

Inmarsat Global Xpress terminal is set up to assist with disaster response

In order to coordinate the mass evacuation, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) deployed Inmarsat’s high-speed Global Xpress service in a forward operations centre in Clark City, just outside the affected area.

With terrestrial communications either down or unreliable and more monsoon rains forecast, Global Xpress has provided the disaster response teams with seamless, reliable connectivity to enable the flow of information in and out of the disaster zones and the control of recovery operations.

NRDCC operations centre relies on Global Xpress connectivity to coordinate emergency response

Disaster response

Under the UK Space Agency’s International Partnership Programme (IPP), Inmarsat has been working with the Philippines government’s Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to use our satellite connectivity to reduce the impact of disaster response in the country.

The IPP is a £152 million initiative funded by the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) to partner the UK’s space expertise with developing and emerging countries to deliver sustainable economic or societal benefits.