“THE PHILIPPINE DISASTER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM”

The Philippines is famous for its rich culture, hospitable people, and blessed with tropical climate, great beaches, corals and reefs among others. It has two seasons that alternately occur, the dry and wet seasons. About eighty (80) million people enjoy the dry season and part of the population suffers during rainy days because of the occurrence of tropical storms. Just like any country, rainy days have good and bad effects. Our people fear typhoons though preparations are being done because of their damaging effects. Flashfloods and landslides caused by typhoons and thunderstorms are being feared by the people more than any act of terrorism, since, these catastrophic events are uncontrollable.

This presentation outlines the underlying factors and principles that prompted the Philippine authorities to adopt the present crisis management system.

More than 7,000 islands and islets comprise the Philippine Archipelago. Stretching approximately 1,850 kilometers from north to south and 970 kilometers from east to west , the country is located at the western part of the Pacific Ocean. The Philippines lies between the Pacific and Eurasian Plates which makes it highly vulnerable to typhoons, floods, landslides, volcanic eruptions and earthquakes. The Pacific Ring of Fire that runs at the western rim of the Pacific Ocean is the most seismically active part of the earth, typified by belt of active volcanoes and earthquake generators. These seismographic movements happen at a rate of 4-5 times a day. There are about 300 volcanoes in the Philippines. Twenty-two (22) of these are active while the larger percentage remains dormant as of the record. Lying at 21 degree North latitude, the Philippines is susceptible to typhoons and tsunamis. An average of 22 tropical cyclones hit the Philippines every year, five (5) of which are destructive. The archipelagic nature of the coastal areas makes the country prone to storm surges and tidal waves. While high-intensity earthquakes occur every six (6) years .

The International Red Cross and Crescent Societies assert, the Philippines is one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world. The Philippine Red Cross confirms that 31, 835 Filipinos were killed by these natural disasters within twenty (20) years time.

Nowadays, environmental degradation has caused landslides, deforestation, water pollution, forest fires, thereby greatly affecting the drowning economy of the country. The worst disaster in history was experienced on July 12, 2000 . The Payatas tragedy marked one of the most horrifying figures so far, when 500 garbage scavengers residing at the Payatas dumpsite were buried alive under tons of garbage as 50-foot Garbage Mountain collapsed on their rough and ready homes amidst the heavy-pouring rain.

Worst Volcanic Eruption

The worst volcanic eruption that's recorded so far transpired in June 1991 . The long-time sleeping Mount Pinatubo in Zambales made a historical twist in the lives of the residents when it unleashed some 15 million tons of sulfur dioxide into the earth's atmosphere that resulted in a bit cooling of the earth's temperature. Its ash has been observed as far as Europe in the month of July As a result of the eruption, thousands of people were killed and several villages were buried due to lahar flow. Certainly, it was a day-to forget for the residents of Pampanga, Tarlac and Zambales provinces.

Worst Typhoons and Flashfloods

On November 5, 1991 , a flashflood hit Ormoc City in Leyte province that killed some 3,000 people and wrecked the homes of 50,000 others as typhoon Thelma was passing by. Eight (8) years after, on August 3, 1999 heavy rains caused a landslide that killed fifty-eight (58) people and buried more than a hundred houses at Cherry Hills Subdivision in Antipolo City. Following on November 09, 2001, 350 residents were buried alive in Mahinog, Camiguin when typhoon “Nanang” caused a flashflood.

Worst Earthquake

On July 16, 1990 , an earthquake recording 7.7 on the Richter scale doomed 1,700 people injured 3,000 others and displaced 148,000 in Luzon. Damaged cities included Baguio, Dagupan and Cabanatuan.

Worst Fires

Fire-caused disasters have made the authorities to be stricter in implementing laws relative to safety precautions in building constructions. On March 18, 1996 , a fire at the Ozone disco along Timog Avenue in Quezon City burned 150 , out of the 350 people who were inside the bar, to death while 90 others were physically injured. Another happened on August 18, 2001 when a fire devastated Manor Hotel in Quezon City, killing 75 people and injuring 52 others .

El Niño Phenomenon

During the much-talked about El Niño phenomenon in 1998, food scarcity in Mindanao has affected 985,000 people , mostly indigenous people from upland areas. The drought has given a negative impact on country's water resources, coastal resources, forest and people's health. For the record, 105,095 families were affected and had PHP 8.3 billion agricultural damages . Central Visayas and Northern Mindanao were hit the most, experiencing the driest season ever in 35 years.

Worst Maritime Disaster

The most recent happened last February 27, 2004 when Super Ferry 14 get burned and capsized near Corregidor Island. There were 899 people on board including the crew but after the incident only 781 survived .

In response to the heed of having an organized body to protect the people, the authorities designated the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) as the main agency to prepare for and respond to tragic situations. Its creation was anchored on Presidential Decree 1566 signed on June 11, 1978 carrying the following tasks (For further discussions, please see the SLIDES):

The Philippine government's prime disaster agency works both at the national and regional level. But due to the country's archipelagic nature and geographic location, the Philippines is indeed vulnerable to natural hazards and catastrophic disturbances. As such is the case, the system's framework caters both to pre-occurrence and post –occurrence aspect of calamity situations. The convergence of these two makes the whole system cycle efficient. As observed, the most effective strategy to minimize the adverse effect of disasters remains to be mitigation and preparedness. Part of Philippines' preparedness strategy is to strengthen linkages with various volunteer groups nationwide. Our Non-Government Organizations (NGO's) has played a vital role in responding to the needs of the community when disaster strikes. The government cannot provide everything because it has to establish disaster response-force multipliers throughout the country.

The prevailing philosophy of our system is to enhance cooperation among the citizens, concerned local and national agencies, with an end view of making both ends meet when facing the challenges of Mother Nature as well as man-made disasters. Both saving and rebuilding the damage constitutes a unified force coming from both sides of the Filipino society.

Thank you.