Philippine Consul General to Honolulu Gina Jamoralin welcomed a delegation from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) at the Philippine Consulate General in Honolulu on June 22, 2017.
The delegation is led by Major General Elvin Velasco, Deputy Chief of Staff for Education and Training, J8 and Rear Admiral Robert Empedrad, Deputy Chief of Staff for Reservist and Retiree Affairs, J9. They are attending the 2017 Makani Pahili Exercise organized by the Hawaii National Guard.
Makani Pahili (Hawaiian for “strong winds”) is a statewide hurricane preparedness exercise focusing on improving Hawaii’s overall preparedness during hurricane season. The exercises run from June 1 through November 30. This annual exercise provides an opportunity to evaluate Hawaii’s disaster preparedness and recovery plans and to raise public awareness of risks of hurricanes. The last killer hurricane which visited Hawaii was Hurricane Iniki which devastated the island of Kauai in 1992. Hawaii and Philippines will be sharing best practices and lessons in disaster management and preparedness.
The other members of the Philippine delegation are Colonel Rolando Rodil PA(GSC), Captain Carlito Barizo PN(GSC), Lt. Marvin Maneja PN, Major Joel Lucas PA, LCDR Anecito Lumantas PN and Master Sgt. Luzviminda Eleanor Banlaoi PA(Res). They were accompanied to the Philippine Consulate by Hawaii National Guard officer Capt. Marco Hartanto (second from left in photo below) and Capt. Rey dela Cruz, (PN), AFP Liaison Officer to USPACOM ( extreme left in photo) .END
