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news / press / 2026-08-26

DepEd launches AI-powered platform for school disaster preparedness

The Philippine Daily Inquirer covers the nationwide launch of LIGTAS+, the AI-driven multi-hazard platform DepEd and ECAIR built to give more than 47,000 public schools earlier, school-level warnings before hazards disrupt classes.

Philippine Daily Inquirer
The National Launch of Project LIGTAS+ stage in Makati City, with the title slide and ECAIR and LIGTAS+ banners beside laptops running the platform

Summary

The Department of Education officially launched LIGTAS+ — Learning Institution Geohazard Tracking and Assessment for Safety — for nationwide implementation on August 26, 2026. The AI-powered multi-hazard platform monitors elevated risk from storms, extreme heat, and volcanic activity around more than 47,000 public schools, drawing on data from PAGASA and PHIVOLCS. Education Secretary Sonny Angara said the platform gives DepEd "clearer and more actionable information to support our schools."

The story also reports that LIGTAS+ publishes automatic situation reports prepared by school DRRM officers, cutting report preparation from hours to about five minutes, and that the launch demonstration showed real-time monitoring of rainfall, extreme heat, wind speed, and temperature spikes. Erika Fille Legara, ECAIR's Chief AI and Data Officer, underscored that LIGTAS+ is a decision-support platform that does not replace official advisories, established protocols, or field assessments.

Details

This is external press coverage. Read the full story at the Philippine Daily Inquirer via the link above.

Related Work

See the LIGTAS+ project write-up and the launch note in Updates for ECAIR's own account of the rollout.