Defining Key Concepts and the Philippine Hazard Profile
About the guest lecturer:
MR. JOSE ABRAHAM C ONGKIKO currently serves as a Project Manager under the
Institution Building Division of the UP Resilience Institute. He is an active
volunteer and the former National Manager of the Volunteer Services Office of
the Philippine Red Cross. He also became the Disaster Risk Management
Manager at Plan International - Philippines. He is also a member of the UP
Vanguard Class of 1982. Mr. Ongkiko is an experienced professional and
volunteer in emergencies and disaster response, with almost 30 years of
experience in disaster management and community development field.
Play Video
Transcript
Today we are going to discuss Understanding Hazards and Disasters, DRRM
Framework, Policies and Cycle, and Some Readiness Tips. I’ll be your lecturer,
Mr. Jose Abraham C Ongkiko, Project Manager from the UP Resilience Institute.
Good day once again!
Today we will be discussing the first installment of this 4-part series on Disaster
Risk Reduction and Management. We will tackle the important concepts about
hazards and disasters as well as discuss the Philippine Hazard Profile. The
outline of the 4-part series is here:
We have Understanding the Concepts and the Philippine Risk Profile,
Classifications of Hazards
DRRM Framework, Policies, and Cycle, and
Some Preparedness Actions
To start with, I’d like you to ponder on these four questions. Is earthquake a
disaster? Is flash flood a disaster? Is typhoon a disaster? Is war a disaster? Well,
the answer to those four questions is a big NO. The presence of hazards
does NOT always lead to disaster.
So what is a disaster? What I initially mentioned is they are all hazards.
A hazard is a dangerous phenomenon, substance, human activity, or
condition. Some hazards are affected by the risks or the condition of the
community. So we have to discuss first the vulnerability of the community. It is
the characteristics and circumstances that make a community, it could be the
system or asset or susceptibility that may affect the damaging effects. Next we
have capacity. Capacity is the combination of all the strengths,
attributes and resources available that can reduce the level of risk
or effects of disaster. Next we have exposure. We are exposed to a certain
extent to any disaster or hazard. We have people, the properties, the
elements present in the hazard zones thereby subject to potential losses
including livelihood or relationship with the family. And all of these affect the
disaster risk. These are already losses in lives, health, status and livelihood,
assets and services.
Let’s look at it in a Disaster Mathematical Equation. We have the hazard, we
have vulnerability, and we have exposure and the capacity. All of these four will
determine the disaster risk. So what is a disaster? Let’s make a review.
Given this picture, we see a mountain and a boulder. What is that? And then,
there are two people. We have one, a drummer boy, and Superman. What are
those? We say that the drummer boy says “Dili ko kadagan” which is bisaya for
“I cannot walk or I have a broken leg.” And we have Superman who says he is a
superhero! So the boulder represents a hazard, two people are exposed, the
vulnerability of one person is he has a broken leg, and Superman’s capacity is
he is alert and able to fly.
Question, what happens if the boulder tumbles down?
The broken-legged person was affected by the hazard, and Superman was able
to fly. So is there a disaster? Yes or No? It has affected the population because
half of the population was affected by physical injury while the other one is safe.
What if there was no Superman, but only two ordinary men having
vulnerabilities and no capacities? What if Superman carried with him his friend,
would there still be a disaster? Can a man’s capacity negate another’s
vulnerability? You can now answer the question, “Can a disaster be prevented?”,
“Can a hazard be prevented?”.
Let’s now look at the Philippine Hazard Profile. The Philippines is part or
in the Top 10 over the last three years of the World Risk Index Report.
This is a publication which is done yearly by the World Risk Report United
Nations University. In 2013, we were 3rd. In 2014, we were 2nd. This was due to
the effects of Typhoon Haiyan or Yolanda as we know locally. In 2018, we were
3rd, and in 2019, we were 9th. The ranking has been adjusted to focus on risk in
urban areas. The highest level of national risk worldwide is Costa Rica (#1 on
Urban Risk), Philippines (2), Guatemala (9), Bangladesh (11), El Salvador (13),
Papua New Guinea (14).
In terms of typhoon belt where the Philippines is found, on the average, over
100 typhoons or tropical cyclones have formed around the world
annually. In the western Pacific Ocean, which is South of China or the
Philippines, holds the highest formulation or formation of typhoons. You can see
that the Philippines is already almost covered. Also way down, it covers
Australia and South Pacific countries.
In terms of location, the Philippines is found in the Ring of Fire. The Ring of
Fire is highly seismic in activities, lying around the Pacific. This includes New
Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Japan, Alaska, North America, Middle
America, and South America which includes Peru and Chile. There are more
than 400 volcanoes and 23 to 28 of which are considered (active). In the
Philippines right now, there are three volcanoes that are on Alert Level 1. These
include Taal Volcano, Mayon Volcano, and Kanlaon Volcano.
Anyway, if you look at the Weather and Climate Related Disasters in the last 20
years, 90% of major disasters that have happened are natural in nature. These
are floods, storms, heat waves and other weather and climate related events.
About 605,000 people have died and about 4.1 billion affected. We are
now almost 10 billion in population.
This ends Module 1.
Transcript
In this next video, we will be discussing the different classifications of hazards.
Before proceeding, you can click on the link displayed on the screen to know
more about the Philippine Hazard Profile.
General classifications of hazards include Natural Hazards and
Technological/Manmade. As I mentioned earlier in my previous video, the UN
reports that there are now 300 hazards, of which about 60% are technological or
manmade and the rest or 40% are natural hazards.
The first natural hazard that we will discuss are earthquakes, and I’m sure that
most of you have experienced an earthquake. Here in the Philippines, it is one of
the most deadliest natural hazards. Most deaths are due to buildings being
collapsed or fires, or due to tsunamis, flooding, or landslides. These are the side
effects or it can be sometimes the main effect of an earthquake because an
earthquake can trigger landslides, tidal waves or tsunamis. The strongest
earthquake that we had over the last years is the 2013 Earthquake of Bohol and
the recent Central Luzon 1990, but the most recent is the one last year in
Maguindanao.
Next we have the tsunami which is triggered by an earthquake. The deadliest
tsunami that has happened was in the Indian Ocean, from Sumatra, Indonesia in
December 2004 which was caused by a 9.1 earthquake with waves as high as
50 feet and reportedly killed 230,000 in 15 countries. The biggest tsunami
damage was in Japan in March 2011 caused by a 9.0 earthquake and generated
waves as high as 10 meters, killing an estimated 19,000 people. It also
destroyed nuclear facilities in Japan. So a tsunami is caused by a series of waves
and displacement of water.
Next, landslides. Landslides are triggered by an earthquake or a volcanic
eruption. There are so many types of landslides and you can see it here. One
thing for sure, similar to an earthquake or tsunami, you don't want landslides to
happen at night. There have been continuous rainfalls, we are now in our rainfall
season, and there are landslides that can happen if you are beside a mountain
range. There is also a lot of flow when there are landslides. You have to look for
loose soils in your area that might be landslides. Or, after a tsunami when it hits
the land, soil can loosen and there might be landslides. Next, we have the
Guinsaugon Landslide in Southern Leyte which buried a whole barangay with a
population of 1857, happened sometime in 2006.
Volcanic Hazards. As I mentioned, there are around 400 active volcanoes
around the world and in the Philippines, we have about 22 active volcanoes. I’m
sure you know that Mayon Volcano is a famous volcano in the world and next to
that, Taal Volcano which erupted just last year and was affected in January.
Typhoon. The Philippines average 20 typhoons a year, of which about 5 are
strong ones. The most famous typhoon happened in 2013 known as Typhoon
Haiyan internationally and locally as Typhoon Yolanda. Typhoon Yolanda
spanned about 800 km from Southern Leyte up to Northern Luzon. You could
see Typhoon Yolanda when it was approaching the Philippines it almost covered
the whole Philippines. It had strong winds of about 320 kph and also brought
rainfall.
Storm Surge is triggered by a typhoon. These are incoming typhoon waves
affected due to strong winds and at least 62 kph. The storm surge of Typhoon
Yolanda was about 80 kph brought about by the 320 kph [Link] the
coastline have low elevation which could be affected by storm surge? Mostly
these are in the coastal area. This picture is the effect of a storm surge in one of
the areas in Tacloban, Leyte. Another, such a big boat was brought into land by
the storm surge. You might ask, what is the difference between a tsunami and a
storm surge? As I mentioned earlier, a tsunami is triggered by an earthquake. So
there are forms of earthquake which are lateral in nature or vertical. In a vertical
nature of earthquake, when land falls, and this is a body of water (above),
naturally yung tubig sasama pababa and there is a space created wherein the
water will become a tidal wave or tsunami. Whereas, in a storm surge, if this is
the sea and these are bodies of water, yung storm surge is caused by the winds
above it, so kung mababa ang typhoon, you could imagine that the wind pushes
the water below and creates again another surge of water that becomes a storm
surge or its also called a tidal wave. Both tsunami and storm surge creates a
tidal wave kaya sinasabi natin, uy tidal wave, o daluyon, o higanteng agos ng
tubig. But a tsunami is created by an earthquake, and a storm surge is created
by a typhoon. Malinaw sa inyo yon?
The next hazard we will discuss is flooding. What are floodings? Alam natin na
nagkakaroon ng floodings o baha kung maraming ulan. Or maraming ibinuhos
na ulan. Marami ding nagkakaroon ng baha because of overflowing of rivers. Sa
coastal areas, pag tumataas ang dagat lalo na pag high tide. Nagkakaroon
naman ng overflooding because of human-induced flooding. Maraming drainage
ang natatambakan ng basura. We all know na ang floodings, pwede mangyari sa
gabi, pwede mangyari sa umaga and karamihan nangyayari sa mga
mabababang lugar o low-lying areas. We all know that in 2009, almost the
whole of Metro Manila experienced one of its biggest floods. One month of rain
bumuhos sa loob ng 24 oras. Kahit anong flood control system na mayroon ka,
babaha at babaha. Tiyak, with the large number of population which clogged
drainage and possibly, kung high tide pa noon. Kung mababa yung area,
malalagyan ng tubig, walang ma eescape-an kase mas mataas yung dagat. So
we have Ondoy. Nung habagat noong 2012, that was in August in Central Luzon.
Habagat lang yon ha, hindi typhoon.
Next, kung sobra naman ang tubig, meron tayo walang tubig, drought or
tagtuyot. We mostly experience drought during el nino. Kung saan walang
ulan, mahirap ang tubig. So what are the effects of drought? Alam natin ang
drought, pag tuyo ng lupa, hirap tayo magpatubo ng mga pananim. If there ever
is a big reduction in the agricultural sector, wala tayong aanihin, wala tayong
kakainin. Apektado ang nutritional level ng mga tao.
The next hazard that we will discuss is fire o sunog. Saan ba nangyayari ang
sunog? Kadalasan sa mga factories at sa mga bahay dahil mayroong electrical
faulty wirings or naiwanang kandila, napaglaruang apoy at kung anu-ano pa.
The most damage-causing fire that we had recently was the Valenzuela Fire
which affected the factory of slippers, and marami namatay. More recently, we
have the Beirut Explosion which affected a radius of 5 km. Sumabog yung
bodega ng ammonium nitrate. Similarly kung may mangyaring ganon sa Port
Area ng Pilipinas, maaapektuhan hanggang Quezon City, Mandaluyong, and
even parts of Rizal and Pasay.
That ends Module 2.
Transcript
Good day once again. Today we will be talking about Disaster Risk Reduction
and Management Framework, it's Policies and the Cycle. Before again
proceeding, you can refer to the previous video link on the different
classifications of hazards and hazard profile of the Philippines.
We have the AHA Center. This is the ASEAN Coordinating Center for
Humanitarian Assistance on disaster management and it is based on Jakarta,
Indonesia. What is Disaster Management? It is the effort to reduce or
avoid losses caused by hazards, to ensure immediate assistance to
victims of disaster, as well as to achieve swift recovery and return to
normal after a disaster. It is a cyclical process starting from mitigation and
preparedness. As you can see, this is the Disaster Management Cycle;
preparedness, response, preparedness, and mitigation. We start from
mitigation, preparedness, response, then recovery.
Under mitigation, this is the effort to minimize potential impact of
disaster. And what is mitigation? It is building up codes, zoning and public
campaigns. I’m sure you all know the Philippines’ weather or Public Storm Signal
is part of the mitigation process. We shall discuss that in a while.
Next we have preparedness. Ano itong preparedness? Ito ang paghahanda.
How do we respond to disaster when it strikes? We have training, we have
exercises, contingency planning, warning and alert signals. Each barangay and
each locality prepare their DRRM plans. Regularly or annually, we have National
Simulation Earthquake Drills for all schools and offices. That is part of
preparedness.
Next we have response. Response happens after the disaster has occured
or it can also happen before. Activities can be carried out on the immediate
aftermath of a disaster to minimize the immediate effects of disaster. Search
and Rescue, rapid assessment, and logistical distribution.
Next we have recovery. This is bringing back the community to normal.
Normal meaning before there was a disaster or even better, that is why we now
have what we call building back better. Muling pagbangon.
So what is Disaster Risk Reduction? We had a question in Module 2 which
says, “Is Hazard Preventable?” “Is Disaster Preventable?” The answer to both
is yes. Concept and Practice of Reducing Disaster Risk. We have systematic
efforts, we analyze, we manage causal factors that might affect the disaster,
therefore reducing the exposure to hazards and lessening the exposure to
vulnerability. You should think of our hazard vulnerability mathematical
equation. We use wise management and improved defenses. This definition
comes from the UNISDR, United Nations Institute for Sustainable Disaster
Reduction.
What is Disaster Risk Management? This is more of a process using
administrative directives of the whole organization and operational
skills. It implements strategies, policies, proving, and coping capacities.
Disaster Risk Management evolved or was started under Risk Management. It is
a systematic approach and process of managing uncertainties to minimize
potential harm or loss. I’d like to give you a background that risk management
was used in the banking industry. You look at the risk whether before giving a
loan, you study whether that person or that company can pay off its loan. Hindi
mababawasan, hindi maitatakbo, or hindi malulugi ang company para
mabayaran yung utang. And we all know, pag nalugi or hindi mabayaran ang
utang, walang kikitain ang bangko, walang interes. It is through loans where
banks earn. That is why in risk management for disaster, we minimize the
potential harm and loss of humanity. This definition of risk management, we can
see in the main document for DRR in the Philippines.
The most minimum is disaster response. When does disaster response
happen? Immediately after a disaster. Yung iba within the next few hours, within
the next 24 hours, kailangan may immediate response, quick response. It can be
during or immediately after a disaster. In order first and foremost, to save lives,
reduce health impact, and ensure public safety, thereby meeting the basic
subsistence needs of the people that were affected. So ang disaster response is
immediate and short term in nature.
Which has a bigger scope, disaster response or disaster risk reduction? The
correct answer is disaster risk reduction. When you talk about disaster risk
reduction, you think about the whole mathematical equation considering,
hazard, exposure, vulnerability, and capacity. We reduce the disaster risk.
Again, what is the disaster risk? It's reducing the loss and harm to the
community. So pag merong hazard, we think of how to prepare. Ano ba ang
gagawin nating contingency plan kapag bumagyo? Ano ang gagawin nating
contingency plan kapag nagkabaha? Ano ang gagawin nating contingency plan
kapag nagkaroon ng earthquake? Mayroon ba tayong Typhoon Signal Warning
System? Mayroon ba tayong water level guage doon sa mga mabababang lugar
sa atin? Sino ang susundan natin o sino ang sisigaw ng baha, baha, si kapitan ba
o mga tao sa katabi ng ilog? So tinitingnan natin don yung mga hazard. Again
what is hazard in Tagalog? Ito yung panganib. Yung sakuna, yun ang disaster.
Next, sabi natin exposure. Sino ba yung mga taong dapat natin ievacuate?
Yung mga bahay ba na malapit sa tabi ng ilog? Saan ba natin dadalhin sila? Dun
ba malapit din sa ilog o dun ba sa kabundukan? Evacuation and Relocation. I’d
like to remind you, mamaya ididiscuss natin bawal na gamiting lahat ng public
schools bilang evacuation center. Mayroon nang batas and we will discuss that.
Next, mayroon vulnerability and capacity. What is the vulnerability? Ano ba
yung transfer risk? Meron bang insurance ang mga palayan? Meron bang social
protection? Meron ba tayong ibibigay na ayuda t ulong sa mga ating nirelocate.
Yun bang matitigas ang ulo kailangan ba muna bigyan ng isang kabang bigas
bago sumama sa evacuation? May ganong mga pangyayari ngayon.
Reducing the vulnerability and enhancing the capacity. Uunahin ba natin
ievacuate lahat ng mga bata? Susunod mga matatanda, nanay o magulang na
nagbubuntis? Capacities. Yung mga malalakas ba at matatapang, sila ang
maggagather sa community? So that is part of disaster risk and reduction. Yang
part ng disaster reduction happens at the communites and bigger LGUs.
Binabawasan ang disaster risk.
We have a national framework, In the Philippines, it took 10 years for RA 10121
otherwise known as The Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and
Management Act of 2010. It was approved after Typhoon Ondoy and it took
10 years for it to be crafted. Kung hindi nagka Ondoy wala tayong DRRMM. Next
we have RA 9729. Nauna pa yung Climate Change Act noong 2009.
Magkaakibat ang dalawang yan. As I mentioned also kanina, all public schools
are not to be used as evacuation centers. Yan ang Children’s Emergency
Relief and Protection Act, RA 10821, which was enacted June 2016.
At present, we are also focusing on the 10-point Agenda of the current
Administration wherein Disaster Preparedness is one of the priority. All of those
things or all of those policies contribute to the United Nations Sustainable
Development Goal. The Philippines DRRM Act responds to the Sendai Framework
for DRR, the Climate Change Act responds to the Treaty of Paris, and as I have
mentioned it contributes all to the Sustainable Development Goals.
Okay, what is the background of the Philippine DRRM Act of 2010? It was a
milestone in our history. As I have told you, we were only governed by an
Executive Order or Presidential Decree prior to having DRRM Act. It states there
from Disaster Relief and Response approach to DRRM. Noong mga 1960,
marami sa inyo hindi pa buhay, up until 1990 or even early 2000, Relief. Ibig
sabihin pag relief, kapag bumagyo o nagka earthquake, the response is to give
the immediate relief. Diba kanina diniscuss that. That’s why, here’s a joke. What
is DSWD now? Department of Social Work and Development. It used to be DSSD.
And during the disaster relief, DSSD was known as something else. Ano ang
common relief noon? It was mostly canned goods. Sardinas. Swerte na kung
meron kang spam or meatloaf. So DSSD was the Department of Sari-saring De-
lata. Now its Department of Social Work And Development. Response Approach.
We have child-friendly spaces, child protection tracking systems, women-
friendly spaces, comprehensive, because of our DRRM Act, RA 10121. Also in RA
10121, we have the establishment of an organizational structure. DRRMC
ngayon, tapos may OCD, DOH, DepEd, DOH, lahat sila may kanya kanyang roles
na gagampanan, and they comprise the DRRM Council. Last feature is it thinks
about multi-hazards, multi-sectoral, inter-agency and community-based
approaches. Hindi lang naman storm ang dumadating. Kapag nagkaroon ng
storm ano ang kasunod? May flooding, may landslide. Earthquake. Maaaring
magkaroon ng landslide, ng collapse ng structure, ng sunog. Multi-sectoral
meaning hindi lamang DPWH na nagawa ng kalye, hindi lamang education, hindi
lamang pagkain yan. You think about health, education, communication,
infrastructure, communication, multi-sectoral. Inter-agency. An agency has to
perform its specific role. Kapag ginawa ng DPWH yung mga latrines, yung
kalsada, kelangan DSWD o DILG, yung mga tanod ang mga maglilinis ng kalye,
sila din ang magtatake-care ng mga latrines. And the most important thing, its a
community-based approach. Kahit anong ganda ng mga structure and facilities,
if you don’t involve the people in managing it, wala yan. The whole community
is involved in fact from the start, selecting, identifying the needs, it should be a
community-approach. And that is why napakahalaga ng community
organization.
Let us continue with the RA 10121 which is the Philippine DRRM Act of 2010, we
heard the DRRM Framework, we look at risk factors. Ano yung risk factors? We
have the hazard, exposure, vulnerability, and the capacities. Dyan tayo babalik,
the basics. Ano ba yung hazard, panganib? Ano ang exposure? Ano ang
kahinaan? Ano ang kalakasan? This will determine our risk of sakuna. Sakuna is
the disaster. So tinitingnan, ang ating end view is to have safer, adaptive,
disaster resilient Filipino communities toward Sustainable Development. So
meron tayo nyan, the cycle, the focus, we have mitigation, prevention,
preparedness, recovery, and rehabilitation. Bakit cyclical? We have 365 days in
a year, more than 20 typhoons in a year, almost an earthquake every minute,
mandalas tayo may sunog, may bagyo o wala malakas ang ulan, meron tayong
floodings. So kelangan we need to mainstream DRR, climate change in the
planning and implementation of development in all levels of our government.
Magmula sa barangay, sa municipality or city, province, region and then
national. As I have mentioned, under this current administration, disaster
prevention or preparedness is one of the priorities. Review natin kung sino ba
ang ahensya. Sabi natin its an inter-agency multi-sectoral approach, ang DRR
natin.
Okay, let's look at now the different agencies involved in DRR. Under prevention
and mitigation, the lead agency is the Department of Science and Technology.
Sino ang nandoon? PAG-ASA, PhiVolcs. So ang objective nyan is to reduce the
vulnerability elements of risk. Paano? Tinitingnan natin ang natural and
manmade hazards. Binabantayan ng PAG ASA ang mga bagyo kaya tayo may
Typhoon Warning System. Tinitingnan nasaan ba yung mga tao, sino ung mga
mahihirap, ano ang economic system, ano ang dynamics, ano ang kanilang
institutions na nandoon. Tinitingnan ang exposure. Ano ang
CLUT? Comprehensive Land Use Planning. Tinitingnan mo yung mga
mabababang lugar, yung mga highly urban areas at yung mga maraming tao.
Importante ang zoning. Importante na alam ng tao ang mapa. So those are all
prevention and mitigation measures. Bago pa dumating ang panganib.
Next, we have the DILG. Department of Interior and Local Governance. We
reduce the loss that may result in future disasters. From the barangay,
municipality, city, and province. Sila yung nag oorganisa ng mga DRRM offices,
sila yung nagdedevelop ng plano, nagbibigay ng trainings, kagamitan,
communication systems, life-saving devices, plano at drill. Sa DILG yan. That is
preparedness, paghahanda.
So yang unang dalawa, prevention and mitigation, will lessen disaster or risk of
a disaster.
Sabi natin kanina, yung response, mas nauuna ang DSWD kasi yan yung
immediate na pangalan. Ensuring the survival ng mga tao, ng community. So
ano yan? Unang una kailangan natin ng pagkain, tulugan, para mastabilize ang
communications. One of the major needs of people now in all disasters is
communication. We feel safer pag alam natin na ang kamag anak natin o yung
tatay natin ay ligtas. That’s why communication is very important. Yan ang
response. Ang sabi ko nga kanina, its a multi-sectoral and multi-need approach.
Hindi lang sari-saring de-lata. We have now mami, noodles, tinapay, bigas,
hygiene kits, sabon, toothpaste, sanitary facilities, and water.
After the response, we go into rehabilitation. It is led by NEDA. It's being
better and building better. Yung tao, bubuhayin ulit. Nasadlak sa lupa,
bumagsak, natabunan. Kelangan mo silang ibangon. Getting back the
population to normal life. Depende sa disaster o sa hazard, maaaring mangyari
yan in 3 days or 1 day or in several months and even years. For WWII, the
rehabilitation happened for more than 10 years, Typhoon Haiyan (2013) we are
in the 6th year, Marawi, 2-3 taon na.
So that is the Disaster Risk Framework in the Philippines. Some other countries
might have different. Reminder, it's the five basic focuses always, mitigation,
prevention, preparedness, response and rehabilitation. That ends our module.
Transcript
Good day. Today we will be discussing some preparedness and readiness tips
and activities that you can do in preparation for a disaster. For information
about disaster and DRRM you can again watch our previous videos on the
Philippine Hazard Profile, the Classification of Hazards by clicking the link
displayed on your screen.
In any disaster, our instinct is to survive, save our own lives. As a human
being, our first instinct is our own survival. It is not the survival of your
loved ones, whether it is your parents, your brothers and sisters, your son or
daughter, it is your own survival. Our own. And what do we think about in terms
of survival? We have security, we have to feel safe, we have to feel or know
whether our environment is safe for us. Next you have to think
of water because water is the first thing that makes us alive. Next is shelter.
Bumagyo, nagkaeathquake, gumuho lahat ng buildings, you have to think of
some place where you can have some cover, that is shelter. Third is food,
especially among the Filipinos. We eat at least 5 times a day, we need to think
about food. But, the most important thing is still water. These are just some
thoughts for you.
After 3 minutes, we cannot survive anymore. Within 3 minutes, without air
we can still survive. 3 hours without shelter, you might not survive. 3 days
without water and 30 days without food, we can still survive. So think about the
number 3.
What is an important thing to have? So we’ll discuss some survival techniques.
Security, water, shelter, and food. As a preparedness measure so we can be
ready, we need to have survival. When we say preparedness measure, is you
prepare for something. When you go to school, you prepare for class. In any
disaster that may happen, you have to prepare. You have to pack what you call
a disaster go bag or a survival kit. And what are the contents of a survival kit? A
disaster kit can be any bag which is about this size. It should not be more than
10 kg. The contents of this one we will be showing later. This one is a simple
disaster kit which is also a flotation device during floods.
There are some elements to a disaster kit. These are water, a white
cloth or coffee filter, easy to open goods, bleach or iodine, this is for
purification of water, high energy or packed foods, coffee, food for
children or pet foods. Remember, hindi lang tayo human ang dapat
magsusurvive. If you are a pet lover, and you have pets, kelangan isave mo din
ang iyong pet.
Next, we have health and sanitation. Reminder, during disasters, hindi
kailangan na lagi kang mukhang gusgusin, kelangan medjo dignified ka din. You
have your hygiene kits. What are your hygiene
kits? Toothbrush and toothpastes, small shampoo, soap, wet
wipes, vitamins, medicines for first aid, and medicines for yourself, kung ikaw
ay mahiluhin, hypertensive, diabetic, you should pack your
medicines, antibiotics and insect repellants. That’s for health and sanitation.
Next, we have essential documents. What are essential documents? You
should have something that identifies yourself. One of the things that can
identify you is your school id. I also always wear something like this. This is what
I call an ID tag. It has my name, my basic address, the year I was born, my ICE
(In Case of Emergency Call this Person), and it also has my medical background.
It has my blood type, NKD (No Known Disease/Allergy) and it says here, Honor,
Duty, Country. You can keep your birth certificate, your school registration
form, your land titles, you can put them in your USB drive, and better have
your documents photocopied. Then, some emergency list ng mga
directories, and better have some cash. Kayo na bahala magdetermine how
much it is.
You can also have first aid kits, emergency tools, escape kits, and food
and water kits. This can be placed in a simple backpack or a bag like this. It
should not be more than 10 kg. What are the other needs that you need to put
in your bag? We can have duct tapes, safety pins, whistles, petroleum jelly, zip
lock, knife, scissors, blanket, transistor radio, flashlight, candles, lighters,
umbrellas, rope, gloves, etc. Remember in having your basic survival go bags,
you can have your basic items but as much as possible, it should be
personalized. Ano ang gagamitin mo, ano ang mahalaga sayo? That determines
the preparedness and readiness.
These are now the specific tips on what to do during specific hazards. How do
you survive an earthquake? There have been debates on the triangle of life vs
the drop and cover. The triangle of life is that you look for a triangle that when
something might fall, there will be a triangle and that will be a space. But you
will have to determine na yung isang object or wall should be very strong. Under
the drop and cover, you have to look for a table or anything that is sturdy that
you can cover. That is why we have the drop, cover, and hold. During the
earthquake, you should think of being safe. So look for a place where you can
cover. Practice dropping on the ground, looking for a table or under. Stay away
from windows or glasses, from objects that might fall, and stay under the table
until the shaking stops. After the shaking stops, be aware of fallen
objects. Yung mga glasses na nagbagsakan, lamesa, cabinets. And if there is
fire, look for the fire extinguisher. If you are plenty inside the room, as much as
possible, hold on to the person in front of you so you have one single line.
Especially when there is no light. Gather or go to an open space na walang
debris and then count and look for your loved ones. Remember how I told you
security of the first survival instinct is saving yourself. Pero kung nakalabas ka
na, hanapin mo ang iyong nanay, tatay, asawa, kapatid, at mga or kung may
jowa kayo ay jowa.
Next, we have the Public Storm Warning Signal. We are now up from
typhoon signal number 1 to 5, yung typhoon signal no. 5 lumabas lang yan after
2014, Typhoon Haiyan o Yolanda. Pag Typhoon Signal No. 1, we all know it's less
than 30 to 60 to kph and yung bagyo is within less than 36 hrs pa. Mga 1 day
and a half ang layo. Ang Signal No. 2 from 61 to 120 , mga 24 hrs pa, yung No.
3, 18 hrs, yung No. 4 up to 12 hours, and yung No. 5, 12 hours. Pero yung No. 5,
yung wind would be more than above 220. For you to picture it, yung No. 1,
kasing bilis ng bisikleta, No. 2 parang nakamotor ka lang nyan, No.3 para kang
nasa kotse, hanggang mga 117 kph, yung mga 118 to 220, para kang nasa tren,
and yung Signal No. 5, kapag supertyphoon, more than 220 kph, parang
nakasakay ka na sa bullet train. As I’ve mentioned earlier, hindi lamang typhoon
ang ating tinitingnan, we have what we just call as low pressure areas or just
regular rainfall. Now again, in rainfall we have gray, yellow, orange, and red.
Kapag sinabi nating light, para lang yang mga 2 ½ kalahating litro ng softdrinks
ang babagsak, in one hour ganon ang babagsak. Kapag yellow or orange, 4
gallon to 8 gallon, kapag red, torrential or malakas na, 8 gallon. Kapag mga
yellow, bantayan lang natin or monitor, kapag orange, alert na tayo, pero kapag
red na, kelangang mag evacuate na tayo at tataas na bigla ang tubig. Yun yung
rainfall advisory classification and measurement. Dito malabas naglalabas ang
PAG-ASA and also the NOAH Center of UP.
These are the tips before, during, and after flooding. Kelangan alam mo yung
area mo before. Everywhere you go alamin mo if there is to be flooding. Before
a flooding happens also, if you don’t need the electricity patayin mo na from the
main switch. Kapag nagkaroon ng flooding na naka on ang main switch, one is
you get electrocution, the other is maaari magkacause ng fire. During floods,
alamin mo kung saan ka pwede makalabas at makapunta. Kung ang experience
mo hanggang bewang pero ramdam mo tataas lampas ng tao, alamin mo na
kung saan ka pupunta. Alamin mo na kung paano ka aakyat ng bubong mo.
Alamin mo na kung paano ka pupunta sa kabilang bahay. And after, tingnan mo
na hindi madumi ang tubig, walang inaagos na kahoy o yero na maaaring
makasakit sayo, so yan yun pag may baha.
Similarly sa landslide, di mo alam kelan mangyayari. When you are beside a
mountain, or high ground, alamin mo kung merong mga riprap-ing ang bundok.
Bantayan mo. During, para din yan earthquake. Magtago ka sa ilalim ng mesa.
Tingnan mo yung mga maaaring magiba. And then after, tingnan mo yung
paligid again, saan ka pwede mag escape, ano mga pwede natin irepair, at
hanapin mo mga kasambahay mo.
We go now next to the Volcano Alert Level. As I have mentioned in my
previous presentations, Mayon, Taal, and Kanlaon Volcano is now on Alert Level
1. Ibig sabihin, binabantayan. Alert Level 2, may konting lumalabas na usok.
Alert Level 3, maaaring meron nang pyroclastic activity, mayroon nang
lumalabas. And Alert Level 4, intense na. Ngayon, kung sumabog yan, kagaya
ng Mayon which is sumasabog every 4 years, matindi na yon. Kapag nagkaroon
ng Alert Level 5, marami nang inililikas. There’s evacuation already that
happens and may mga responses na. So matindi ang epekto ng volcano. It's a
trigger for landslides, for earthquakes, poison gas emission, and fire. Similarly,
what happened with Taal Volcano is marami ashfall, so kelangan meron kang
ready na N95 or surgical mask, or may towel or some cloth na pwede mo
basahin para di mo malanghap ang fumes kase nakakalason yon. I’m sure now,
each of us has one or two of these masks in our body. Very common ngayon
everybody has a bag to place their gadgets and dapat kasama sa gadget or sa
bag nyo ang mga survival things.
Since it's now the rainy season, very common ang dengue. So what do we do
now? Search and destroy. Tinitingnan natin yung mga pwedeng lagyan ng tubig.
Dapat inaalisan natin yon. Yung lugar na maraming lamok, linilinis natin yon.
Nagkakaroon ng fogging, and maraming basurahan dapat nililinis. That is search
and destroy. Now for self protection, the rainy season is not the time to wear
shorts. It's wearing long pants. Kung gusto nyo namang kagatin kayo ng lamok,
magshorts na kayo. As much as possible, wear long pants, and even sometimes
long-sleeved shirts. Bring an insect or mosquito repellant. Other measures are
sick early consultations. Ano ang effects ng dengue? Para kang linalagnat,
nilalamig, so magconsult ka agad sa doctor. Go to the nearest doctor or consult
the nearest physicians. Then fogging. Usually in UP, nagkakaroon ng fogging
during rainy seasons.
Next tip, leptospirosis. Napakaraming leptospirosis dito sa atin sa Pilipinas
during rainy season and flooding. Yung leptospirosis, yun yung bacteria na
nanggagaling sa mga daga. Iwasan yung mga naka tsinelas na maglakad sa
baha. Masarap maglakad sa baha pero mag ingat, baka may leptospirosis.
It is very important for us to communicate with each and everyone. Ito yung
mga unified hashtags, especially for you millennials. This is the official then
nagbabago lang yan. #RescuePH, #ReliefPH, #RoadAlert para sa mga
accidents, #FloodPH, #TrafficPH, #Safenow, #WalangPasok, paborito kapag
walang pasok. But now since we are now online, kahit sabihing walang pasok,
tuloy ang online.
Next, these are emergency contact details. We have landlines for the NDRRMC,
the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, we have their
landlines, mobile numbers, email address, satellite phone, Facebook, Twitter
account, hashtag, yan time ng Lando yan, #LandoPH.
As a parting word on being prepared and ready, “Nasa huli ang pagsisisi, kaya
unahin ang paghahanda.”
Before I end, I want to introduce the UP Resilience Institute, which was
created by the RA 9500. It is to strengthen the University of the Philippines as
a National University, and create a lead institution for technical assistance to
government and other sectors on the standards of DRR excellence. It started off
with NOAH, the Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards. It is still under
IPhone Application, but you can be a volunteer to be one of its mappers. It is
continuously monitoring natural disasters like flood, landslide, storm surges, and
more recently we have been at the forefront of COVID dashboard. It was created
on Feb 23, 2017 under the leadership of our UP President. We provide free,
accessible, accurate, reliable, and relevant scientific disaster data. We use the
multi-disciplinary approach and different scientific areas. Next we have, if you
can join the K9 Search and Rescue under the UP MMDA Vanguard, if you have
time and a pet lover of dogs, be a member for Search and Rescue. It's a
partnership between UP, MMDA, and the UP Vanguard Inc. and it's on a
voluntary basis. We do obedience training, outdoor activities, training, hiking,
outreach programs, dog pet events, and others.
With that, thank you very much and I hope you enjoy the four modules of DRRM.
Thank you!
Preparing your Disaster "Go" Bag or Survival Kit
Here are the general things that you must include in the preparation of a
survival kit in case of disaster: