Phl has complete ingredients for disaster - DOH

BOHOL, Philippines – With its geographic location and weak regulations, the Philippines has the complete ingredients for disaster and emergency situations, the Department of Health (DOH) said here yesterday.

According to Susan Juangco of the DOH-Health Emergency Management Service, the Philippines is vulnerable to disasters primarily because it is located along the typhoon belt. “Every year, we experience 22 typhoons. For this year, we have not had any typhoon yet,” she said in the Covering Disasters 101 media seminar organized by the DOH here.

Aside from this, the country is also situated along the Pacific Ring of Fire and is sitting on top of two tectonic plates, making it susceptible to earthquakes.

Juangco added that since the Philippines is one of the countries with the longest coastlines, it is also vulnerable to tsunami which comes after an earthquake.

The country is also teeming with 352 volcanoes, 22 of them active while 27 others are potentially active.

Juangco said the Philippines’ vulnerability to emergency situations is aggravated by weak regulations on land transportation, aviation and maritime industries and inadequate prevention and response system.

She cited for instance fires, which she said can be due to illegal electrical connections and non-observance of building codes.

Juangco also cited the country’s inability to properly address oil spill because of weak shipping regulations and lack of equipment for chemical emergency and unclear cleanup policy.

“We may not be able to prevent typhoons (or other natural disasters) but we can mitigate their impacts through our response (system),” Juangco said.

She, however, said that the country’s situation may change with the passage of Republic Act 101211 or the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010.

“This law is intended to institutionalize disaster management in the country. We are hopeful that through this law, we’ll be able to prevent disasters or emergency situations that are preventable while we can mitigate the impact of those that are not preventable,” Juangco told The STAR.       

Before, efforts were more focused on the response aspect of disasters.

“But the law has four pillars – preparedness, response, rehabilitation and recovery. So we will now be able to cover all aspects – from prevention and mitigation to helping the victims (rebuild their lives). We will do this through the coordinated efforts of (all government and private sector agencies), particularly the local government units,” Juangco said.