STUDIES

Philippine cities most at risk from disasters, study shows

LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Of the 10 world cities most exposed to
natural hazards, eight are in the Philippines, according to research which also
showed that over half of the 100 cities most exposed to earthquakes, storms and
other disasters were found in four Asian nations.
The study published on Wednesday by risk analysis firm Verisk Maplecroft analyzed
the threat posed by storms, floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, fires, volcanoes and
landslides in more than 1,300 cities.
It said of the 100 cities with the greatest exposure to natural hazards, 21 were
located in the Philippines, 16 in China, 11 in Japan and eight in Bangladesh.
Of the 13 countries deemed least able to cope with natural disasters, 11 were in
sub-Saharan Africa, with Somalia coming bottom for the fourth consecutive year,
the study showed.
Besides the risk of volcanic eruptions, quakes and floods, the Philippines is hit by
more than 20 typhoons every year.
The biggest typhoon in recent years was Haiyan which struck the Southeast Asian
country in 2013, leaving more than 7,000 people dead or missing. More than 1
million houses were totally or partially damaged in the aftermath.
"Natural hazard risk is compounded in the Philippines by poor institutional and
societal capacity to manage, respond and recover from natural hazard events," the
report said.
It added that disaster risk reduction strategies in the Philippines were improving
after the "widely criticized" response to Haiyan.
Better communication and the evacuation of 1.7 million people meant that Typhoon
Hagupit, a category 3 storm, killed only 27 people in December 2014.
The report rated the Philippines' capital Manila with a population of almost 12
million as the fourth most exposed city in the world. Port Vila, the capital of Vanuatu
in the South Pacific, was considered most vulnerable to natural hazards, followed by
Taguegarao and Lucena in the Philippines.
Port Vila and Taipei City, in Taiwan, were the only cities outside the Philippines to
feature in the top 10.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/us-global-disasters-cities-idUKKBN0M01JX20150304
Summary:

Based on the research, 100 cities are being threatened by natural

disasters such as earthquakes, storms and others that are usually found in
four Asians nation consisted of the Philippines, China, Japan and
Bangladesh. Indeed, the Philippines is inseparable from natural disasters,
neither all the countries. Out of the 10 world cities most exposed to
natural hazards, 80% of it was proven exposed to the Philippines. The
Philippines experienced tons of disasters, perhaps, the most traumatic is
being hit by more than 20 typhoons every year. The Typhoon Haiyan is
strongest and biggest typhoons that ever came across. This is a tragedy
that vanished the houses of numerous people and killed more than 7,000
peoples life. Because of this, it became an alarm to the Philippines in
response to the said typhoon, it was explained that the disaster risk
deduction strategies was improved because the recent typhoon Hagupit
killed only 27 people compared with last years tragedy. Hence, natural
disasters are everywhere, and Philippines is prone to it.

Philippines is 3rd most disaster-prone country, new study shows

After Pacific countries Tonga and Vanuatu, the Philippines ranks as the third most
disaster-prone country in the world because of its high exposure to natural
calamities, a new international report showed.
The World Disaster Report 2012, released in Brussels on Oct. 11, also said that the
Philippines could spare up to 20 million of its peopleabout a fifth of its total
populationfrom natural disasters by improving the protection of its coral reefs, a
primary line of defense against coastal hazards, including tsunamis.
Tropical and coastal nations led the list of 15 countries at high risk for disasters,
owing to their proximity to the sea(that) exposes (them) to the natural hazards of
cyclones, flooding and sea level rise, read the report.
The reports list of the top 15 most-at-risk nations included Guatemala, Bangladesh,
Solomon Islands, Costa Rica, Cambodia, Timor-Leste, El Salvador, Brunei
Darussalam, Papua New Guinea, Mauritius, Nicaragua and Fiji.
Adaptation measures
Although third in the list, the Philippines had the best rating on adaptation
measures, with scores similar to that of Malaysia and Thailand, which ranked 91st
and 92nd, respectively.
The report, a collaboration among the United Nations Universitys Institute for
Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS), the German Alliance for Development
Works (Alliance) and the US-based environment group The Nature Conservancy,
rated the disaster risk of 173 countries using globally available data on their
individual exposure and susceptibility to disasters, as well as their coping and
adaptive capacities in the event of natural calamities.
Apart from an overall rating, the report also released the countries scores in five
indicators: Disaster exposure, vulnerability, susceptibility, lack of coping capacities
and lack of adaptive capacities.

The top 15 most at-risk nations are all tropical and coastal, where coastal habitats
like reefs and mangroves are incredibly important for peoples lives and livelihoods.
Reefs, for example, can reduce wave energy approaching coasts by more than 85
percent, The Conservancy said in a statement posted on its website.
The report noted how disaster preparedness and mitigation and adaptation
measures implemented by governments could reduce risk, and cited the
Netherlands for its highly developed coping and adaptation measures.
Lowest-risk countries
African and Latin American countries also made up the riskiest half of the list, while
Middle Eastern, European and North American countries were rated among the lowrisk nations. Malta and Qatar were rated as the two lowest-risk countries.
The study further noted the increasing incidence of natural disasters through manmade environmental degradation and climate change. The report said some 4,130
natural disasters were recorded from 2002 to 2011, leaving more than a million
victims and an economic loss of roughly $1.195 trillion.
So far, people have rarely been the direct triggers of such disasters. But with their
devastating interventions in nature, they have massively raised the hazard
potential, the report said.
The destruction of mangrove forests and coral reefs, for example, off the coasts of
Southeast Asia, has reduced protection against tidal waves and flooding, it added.
http://globalnation.inquirer.net/52858/philippines-is-3rd-most-disaster-pronecountry-new-study-shows
SUMMARY:
According to the study, the Philippines is considered as the 3rd most
disaster prone country around the world because of the numerous natural
disasters happened. Nevertheless, the natural calamities could decrease
the number of peoples death and save the natural resources if people
make a move to protect coral reefs and other coastal hazards that can be
used as defense mechanism. When it comes to measuring the adaption,
the Philippines has the best rating in adapting to natural calamities. High
adaptation measures, disaster preparedness and mitigation would be an
asset for every country because it would reduce risks when natural
disasters hit them. Even though there are some countries like Middle
Eastern, European, North America, Malta and Qatar were ranked as
lowest-risk disaster, it actually did not conserved the rank because it is
with the people who definitely increase the hazard potential like
annihilate the mangrove forest and destroying the coral reef that has a
great potential in reducing the risk disaster. Thus, it causes all the
country, particularly the Philippines, to experience natural disasters.