7.2 quake may damage 168,300 buildings in MM – Phivolcs chief

MANILA, Philippines - About 168,300 residential buildings may be heavily damaged and 339,800 partly damaged if a magnitude 7.2 earthquake from the West Valley Fault hits the country, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) warned yesterday.

In a lecture organized by the New Zealand embassy in Makati, Phivolcs chief Renato Solidum Jr. also said government scientists have predicted that the fault, from which a powerful quake can emanate, “is ripe for another major movement.”

The West Valley Fault, or the Marikina fault line, starts from the Sierra Madre and runs through Bulacan; Rodriguez, Rizal; Quezon City; the eastern side of Metro Manila including Pasig and Taguig; Muntinlupa; San Pedro and Sta. Rosa in Laguna; and ends in Carmona, Cavite.

Solidum said that under this scenario, eight to ten percent of public buildings may sustain heavy damage while 20 to 25 percent may be partly damaged.

A magnitude 7.2 quake can also leave 33,500 people dead and 113,600 injured, and the temblor can affect lifelines like water pipes, electricity, bridges and communication facilities.

“We don’t want this scenario to happen; we have to do something so it won’t happen,” Solidum said.

He stressed the need to strictly impose the regulations on buildings and structures to minimize the impact of earthquakes, noting that weak structures are vulnerable to earthquake-related hazards such as ground shaking and liquefaction.

“We need to have appropriate land use. We have to be serious towards construction of buildings. We have to implement the Building Code strictly,” he added.

Solidum also identified six major strategies to reduce the impact of earthquakes in the Greater Metro Manila area.

These are enhancing the legal framework and institutional capacity for effective disaster management system; building capacity for relief and recovery; strengthening community preparedness for disaster because communities should not be too dependent on the government; strengthening building and structures, including power and water facilities; enhancing national government resistance to earthquakes; and promoting research and technology development for earthquake impact reduction measures.

“Earthquake preparedness should be everyone’s business,” Solidum said.

For his part, Rob Johnston, general manager for business development of New Zealand’s Geological and Nuclear Sciences, said the Philippines should consider developing a plan to retrofit buildings that fail to meet standards.

The government, he added, should also identify resources that need to be functioning after an earthquake like hospitals, disaster management centers, roads, broadcast media, fire and ambulance stations, and telecommunication facilities.

He also cited the importance of reviewing the engineering designs of buildings and roads to determine if they are resilient to disasters.

“Do it now. Once the earthquake strikes, it is too late,” he noted.

New Zealand has experienced strong quakes, including the 2011 Christchurch earthquake that left close to 200 people dead and damaged about 100,000 buildings.