Building Back Better/Smarter

DECIBEL V. FAUSTINO-ESLAVA*
1
, GRACIANO P. YUMUL,JR.
2
, CARLA B. DIMALANTA
3
,
NOELYNNA T. RAMOS
3
, KARLO L. QUEAO
3
and BETCHAIDA D. PAYOT
3

1
School of Environmental Science and Management, University of the Philippines, Los Baos, Laguna,
Philippines
2
Monte Oro Resources and Energy Inc., Makati, Philippines
3
National Institute of Geological Sciences, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines


The year 2013 has been extremely challenging for the country in terms of disaster
occurrences. It is frightening to think, therefore, that a few more tropical cyclones are
forecasted to still possibly enter the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR) before the
year ends.

In the past few years, atypical weather systems have been happening across the country
and causing billions of pesos in losses each year. Increased amounts of precipitation have
accompanied previously "harmless" monsoons, inter-tropical convergence zones, tail-end
of the cold front and low pressure areas. In October, Typhoon Nari swept across Central
Luzon and cost the country nearly PhP3 billion worth of damages to the agricultural
sector alone. A month later, Typoon Haiyan entered the PAR on 7 November 2013 and
devastated central Philippines with extreme wind speeds that also generated catastrophic
storm surges. In between these two disastrous weather-related calamities, a 7.2 magnitude
earthquake from a previously unrecognized fault flattened out numerous towns, not just
in Bohol where the earthquake was centered, but also in the neighboring island of Cebu.
In the immediately preceding years, numerous losses in lives and properties were
experienced in Mindanao that, historically, had only been traversed by cyclones once in
fifty years.

In most of these calamities, the disaster risk management systems that have been
meticulously put in place by both of the local and national governments were easily
overwhelmed by the magnitude of the problems. While everyone recognizes that there
was ample early warning, blame games and questions on whether communities could
have been better prepared continue to be played and replayed. This paper presents our
learnings from these calamities, how we can improve on the current disaster risk
management plans and how the country can build back better/smarter.