DISASTER READINESS AND RISK REDUCTION

WEEK 1: THE CONCEPT OF DISASTER AND DISASTER RISK

Disaster
- A serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a society at any scale due to hazardous
events.

Event
- Already a disaster if a hazard has already affected a population making them vulnerable.

Disaster Risk
- The potential loss of life, injury or destroyed or damaged assets.

Disaster Risk Formula

𝐻𝑎𝑧𝑎𝑟𝑑 × 𝐸𝑥𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒 × 𝑉𝑢𝑙𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑦
- 𝐶𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦

Hazard
- A process, phenomenon, or human activity that may cause loss of life, injury or health impacts, property
damage, social and economic disruption, or even environmental degradation.

Exposure
- The situation of people, infrastructure, housing, and other tangible human assets located in
hazard-prone areas.

Vulnerability
- A condition determined by physical, social, economic, and environmental factors of processes that
increase the susceptibility of an individual.

Capacity
- The combination of all strengths, attributes, and resources available.

Nature of Disasters
1. Natural
- Forest Fires
- Eruptions
- Tsunami
- Flood

2. Man-made

Disaster Risk Drivers

- Factors that promote or increase the risk of a disaster.
- These are:
● Climate Change
● Poverty
 ● Socio-Economic Inequality
● Increase Population Density/Growth
● Rapid and Unplanned Urbanization
● Environmental Degradation
● Lack of Awareness
● Weak Governance

Pollution
- A man-made disaster in the environment brought about by irresponsible actions and activities.

WEEK 2: EFFECTS OF DISASTERS

● The effects of the disaster are focused on how it damaged the community.
● This is what the LGU will take into consideration in planning out or giving out their resilience/capacity.
● This is what usually is in the headlines in the news.

Effects of Disaster
1. Death / Mortalities / Injuries / Missing Persons
2. Displaced Population
3. Health Risks
4. Food Scarcity and Water Shortage
5. Emotional Aftershocks
6. Economic Loss
7. Infrastructure and Property Damages

Disasters From Different Perspectives

- These perspectives are used to assess the damages and the possibility of future damages to the
community.
- These are:
1. Physical
- Damages to physical elements such as people and their properties, and buildings, and
other infrastructures
2. Psychological
- Serious mental and emotional consequences of a disaster to a victim
3. Socio-Cultural
- Refers to the behavior of communities and societies toward hazards and disasters.
4. Economic
- Refers to the loss caused by disasters on human physical and financial capital, the
impact of disasters on economic growth
5. Political
- The role of the government and its institutions on disaster preparedness, mitigation,
prevention, response, recovery, and rehabilitation.
6. Biological
- Involvement of living organisms that can spread diseases, or the sudden growth of the
population of pests

WEEK 3: ELEMENTS EXPOSED TO HAZARDS AND VULNERABILITIES

Exposure
- Refers to the elements at risk that can be affected by hazards or are present in the hazard zone that is
subject to potential losses.

Categories of Exposed Elements

1. Physical elements
- Infrastructures such as bridges, roads, railways, harbors, and airports.
- Essential facilities such as schools, hospitals, etc.
- Utilities
- Transportation and communication facilities
 2. Societal Elements
- Vulnerable age groups (elderly and children), persons with disability, homeless, etc.
3. Economic Elements
- Business and trade activities, transport, productivity, and opportunity costs
4. Environmental Elements
- Biodiversity, and environmental resources such as land, water, and air

Vulnerability
- Refers to the susceptibility of an individual, community, asset, or system to the assets of hazards

Dimensions of Vulnerability
1. Physical
- Refers to the geography, location, and place of the population at risk, and the site, design, and
materials used for physical structures
2. Social
- This includes demography, displacement and migration, level of education and literacy, health,
and well-being, etc.
3. Economic
- Refers to the susceptibility of an economic system to the effects of a possible disaster
4. Environmental
- This includes the regulation of the ecosystem, ecosystem degradation, depletion of natural
resources, etc.

Variations of Vulnerability
1. Children
- Not fully developed physically and emotionally
- Poor capability to defend themselves from abuse and exploitation
- Should be provided with special protection needs
2. Senior Citizens
- May have poor health conditions which can worsen during disaster
- Require assistance in terms of source of income, supply of medicine or access to medical
facilities
3. Women
- Less opportunities for work and lower wages due to discrimination and gender inequality
- Pregnant women and those who underwent childbirth would need pre- and post-natal care
4. Persons with Disability
- Often not reached by disaster warning systems or are not included in disaster plans
- Require higher level of protection and easy access to specified healthcare
5. Ethnic Minorities
- Disasters may force indigenous people to flee from their homes and relocate to distant places
- Vulnerable to misrepresentation and discrimination due to cultural differences
- May have less of income-generating opportunities when displaced by disaster events
6. Survivors of Conflict and Violence
- Physical needs
- Need counseling to help them recover from disaster
- May need protections as they are vulnerable to abuse
7. Urban Poor
- Those with low income and unsecure livelihoods are less likely to have greater capacity to
withstand the effects of disasters
- Laborers from informal sector may be displaced due to the circumstances of disaster

The Lower The Susceptibility, The Lower The Vulnerability, Therefore, Higher Resilience.

WEEK 4: RECOGNIZING VULNERABILITY OF EXPOSED ELEMENTS

KEY TERMS
- Hazard, Disaster Risk, Exposure, Vulnerability
𝐻𝑎𝑧𝑎𝑟𝑑 × 𝐸𝑥𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒 × 𝑉𝑢𝑙𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑦
- 𝐷𝑖𝑠𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑅𝑖𝑠𝑘 = 𝐶𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦
 - 𝐷𝑖𝑠𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑅𝑖𝑠𝑘 = 𝐻𝑎𝑧𝑎𝑟𝑑 × 𝑉𝑢𝑙𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑦 × 𝐸𝑥𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒
- If there are no exposed elements or the exposed elements have low vulnerability, there is no disaster
risk.

Recognizing Vulnerability
1. Physical Elements
- Poorly made and planned establishments
- Faulty wiring, gas, water leaks
2. Societal Elements
- Inadequate knowledge or training
- Population of vulnerable age groups
- Lack of insurance or social protection
3. Economic Elements
- Unsustainable livelihood or business
- Poor accessibility to work
- Ban on tourism activities
- Unstable price of raw building materials
4. Environmental Elements
- Possible leakage of harmful substances to the environment
- Introduction of invasive species habitat destruction

Vulnerability Monitoring and Assessment

- These are categories and associated that can be used to recognize vulnerability.
- These are:
1. Populations of concerns
- This refers to the populations who need more intervention, most especially during and
after the disaster.
- elderly - 9.5%; children - 28%;
pregnant- 9%; pwd - 1.57%
2. Gender Concerns
- Gender-based differences relative to accessibility of opportunities, services, resources,
and positions in economic and political structures should be considered when disaster
strikes.
3. Health Outcomes
- Refers to the population's status of general health

4. Health Services
- Refers to the capacity and availability of health care
5. Water and Sanitation
- Refers to the general state and quality of potable water, and the state of sewage
disposal
6. Education
- The access to formal and non-formal educational systems should be addressed
accordingly.
7. Communication
- This refers to the availability of and access to communication facilities
8. Transportation
- The availability of and access to transportation networks and facilities includes traffic
density on roads and highways, distance of airports and seaports, accessibility of travel
within and across areas etc.
9. Environmental Pressures
- Refers to the changes in the environment due to human activities.

Reducing Disaster Risk

1. Prevention
- Aims to completely avoid or eliminate the hazard or the exposure to its effects
 2. Mitigation
- Aims to reduce, lessen, and limit the hazard of the exposure to its effects through external
intervention methods.
3. Adaptation
- Inclined to changes in human behavior to reduce exposure and vulnerability

WEEK 5: HAZARDS

Hazards
- an event is already a disaster if a hazard has already affected a population making them vulnerable.
- event/process/phenomena
- Not every typhoon is a disaster

Classification of Hazards
1. Natural Hazards
- Naturally occurring phenomena or processes. (ex. flood, air pollution, and typhoon)
2. Quasi-natural Hazards
- Hazards that are outcomes of the interaction of natural phenomena and man-made activities.
(ex. smog or desertification)
3. Man-made/Human Induced Hazards
- Those that result from human activities and action. (ex. fire)

Categories of Hazards
1. Natural Hazards
a. Geologic
- Natural phenomena or processes that occur in the earth’s crust. (ex. building destruction
caused by earthquake)
b. Hydrometeorological
- Atmospheric, hydrological and oceanographic natural processes or phenomena. (ex.
storm surge)
c. Biological
- Living things or substances from living things that can cause illnesses and diseases or
any harm. (ex. COVID)
2. Technological Hazards
- Man-made hazards caused by technological, infrastructure, or industrial accidents or failures.
(ex. dam failures and industrial pollution)
3. Environmental Degradation
- Processes caused or induced by human activities or in combination with natural hazards. (ex.
factory emissions)

Types of Hazards
1. Slow onset hazards
- ex. drought, desertification, sea-level rise, epidemic disease
2. Rapid or Sudden onset hazards
- ex. Earthquake, volcanic eruption, flash flood, transport accident

Impact of Various Hazards

1. Physical Impact
- Death and injuries, casualties of people and destruction or damages to properties and
infrastructures.
2. Psychological
- Psychological trauma, chronic anxiety, depression, and other emotional and mental disorders.
3. Socio-Cultural
- Migration, alteration of tradition social status, loss of cultural identity, ethnic conflicts, sexual
abuse, domestic violence, and changes in lifestyle.
4. Economic
- Loss of employment, livelihood and property/land.
 5. Environmental
- Environmental contamination, loss of forests, and natural rivers.
6. Biological
- Spread of epidemic disease to people, flora, and fauna.

WEEK 6: EARTHQUAKE HAZARDS AND ITS EFFECTS

Earthquake
- The sudden or rapid shaking of the ground due to the release of potential energy stored in the rocks.

Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (DOST-PHIVOLCS)

- The service institute of DOST that is mandated to monitor and study disasters that may be caused by
earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and other geotectonic phenomena.

Seismology
- The study of earthquakes

Seismologist
- The expert

Seismograph
- The instrument used to record seismic waves

Seismogram
- The record of the ground shaking

Focus vs Hypocenter vs Epicenter

- As the distance from the focus and epicenter increases, the shaking of the ground decreases

Earthquakes can be described by:

1. Magnitude
- Estimate of the amount of energy released at the focus or origin of the earthquake
- Arabic numerals
- Richter scale is used for the quantitative measure of the earthquake’s magnitude
2. Intensity
- Refers to the degree of shaking or the severity of its effects on the earth’s surface
Earthquake Hazards
1. Ground Shaking
- Up down and lateral movement or vibration of the ground
- Caused by the passage of body and seismic waves
- Intensity of ground shaking depends on:
- Magnitude of an earthquake: The greater the magnitude, the greater the severity of the
ground shaking.
- Distance from the epicenter: The greatest severity of the ground shaking is near the
epicenter, and decreases away from the epicenter.
- Geologic condition of the area: A loose unconsolidated sediment is prone to more
severe ground shaking
- Effects:
- Buildings vibrate (shake) because of ground shaking
- Buildings and other structures that can’t withstand ground shaking can have damages,
can be destroyed, or can collapse.
- Can cause landslide and liquefaction
2. Ground Rupture
- The offset or deformation of the land surface due to movement of the fault.
- This geologic phenomenon commonly happens in shallow earthquakes.
- Effects
- Ground cracks
 - Many structures can have damages such as houses, commercial buildings, bridges,
roads and highways, tunnels, and canals.
- Structures present across fault zones can collapse
3. Liquefaction
- It happens when ground shaking due to moderate or intense earthquakes results in the mixing
of body of sediments (sand or soil) and groundwater, and as a consequence, the ground
becomes soft and could no longer support structures that will eventually sink or tilt.
- It can lead to ground failure
- Effects:
- Ground failure
- Weakened support to building foundations which may eventually sink or tilt
- Buildings or structures in the liquefaction-prone area can have extensive damages
4. Tsunami
- The word means harbor waves in Japanese
- A series of waves generated by an earthquake that occurs below or near the ocean floor
- It can also be generated by volcanic eruption, landslide, meteorite or asteroid impact displacing
the water in the ocean.
- Tsunamis are different from tidal waves. Tidal waves are caused by the gravitational force
between the earth and moon, whereas tsunami waves are generated by the displacement of the
water in the ocean caused by the movement of the fault under the sea during an earthquake.
- Tsunami is also different from a storm surge. Storm surge is the heightening of sea level that
occurs during typhoons or hurricanes.
- Coastlines or coastal areas are vulnerable to tsunamis.
- The height of tsunami waves can reach more than five meters causing destruction of properties
and loss of lives.
- Rapid, violent flooding in communities near coastal areas
5. Fire
- It is associated with broken gas pipes and damaged electrical lines because of damages
caused by ground shaking to buildings and other infrastructures.
- Effect:
- Destruction of properties and loss of lives

Types of Tsunami
1. Local
- Generated within a hundred kilometers from the source and is confined to coasts.
- Caused by earthquakes, landslides or a pyroclastic flow

2. Far field or Distant

- Tsunami waves that can travel from 1 to 24 hours before reaching the coastlines of the nearby
countries

Signs of an Impending Tsunami

1. If an earthquake occurs in the coastal region and it originated from the oceanic crust, a possible
tsunami can take place.
2. Rapid fall in sea level may happen as the ocean water withdraws from the coastline.
3. Unusual roaring sound which can be an approaching tsunami.

WEEK 7: EARTHQUAKE HAZARD MAP AND VOLCANIC HAZARDS

Hazard map
- A map that shows areas that are vulnerable or at risk to a specific hazard.
- There’s a separate map for each kind of hazard, which means, there is a hazard map that shows areas
at risk from floods, landslides, storm surge, and other hazards.
- Examples:
 -

Other terms
PHIVOLCS: The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology
PDZ: Permanent Danger Zone

Uses of hazard maps:

1. Are basis for risk reduction and hazard protection measures
2. Give significant information for emergency planning
3. Show potential risks to the communities, which raise their awareness and readiness for imminent
and possible disasters
4. Are basis for spatial development plans and formulation of building rules and regulations for
specific areas

Volcano
- It is a vent, hill or mountain from which hot and molten rocks, rock fragments, and gaseous materials
have been ejected

Magma
- is molten or hot liquid rock in the Earth's mantle

Lava
- magma or molten rock that reached the Earth's surface

Basaltic Lava
- Least viscous
- Can flow up to tens of kilometers from the erupting vent
- 1000-2000 degrees celsius

Andesitic Lava
- Moderately viscous
- Can flow few kilometers per hr
- 800-1000 degrees celsius
Rhyolitic Lava
- Most viscous
- Forms a lava dome
- 650-800 degrees celsius

Volcano Hazards
1. Lava Flow
- Rivers of incandescent molten rock or lava that erupted from a crater or fissure and moved
downslope or away from an eruption vent.
- Lava flow depends on the following factors:
- steepness of the slope
- type of lava
- lava tube or broad sheet
- lava production
2. Pyroclastic fall
- Occurs when pyroclastic fragments of rocks or tephra are ejected in a great distance and
propelled through the atmosphere
- Tephra are fragments of volcanic rocks which can be further classified according to their
diameter:
a. Blocks and bombs (>than 64 mm): can only be deposited in proximity from the eruptive
vent.
b. Lapilli or Cinders (2-64 mm): can upwardly carry within a volcanic plume or downwardly
carried in a volcanic cloud
c. Volcanic ash (<2 mm): reaches very long distances as it falls out of suspension
3. Pyroclastic flow
- A mixture of pyroclastic fragments, specifically how lava blocks, pumice and ash, and hot
volcanic gases
4. Lahar
- It is a mudflow or debris flow, a mixture of pyroclastic materials and water

5. Volcanic Gases
- Gases that are released to the atmosphere during eruptions
- Includes water vapor, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, hydrogen sulfide,
hydrogen chloride and hydrogen fluoride.
6. Ballistic Projectiles
- These are volcanic rocks directly ejected from the vent with force and trajectory

WEEK 8: IMPENDING VOLCANIC ERUPTION AND VOLCANIC HAZARD MAP

Signs of an Impending Volcanic Eruption

1. Intensified steaming activity with a change of color from white to gray or to dark steam
2. Dried-up vegetation, streams, and water wells
3. Ground movement/tremors due to volcanic earthquakes

4. Crater glow near the crater or summit area

 5. Increased frequency of landslides and rockfalls
6. Increased temperature in hot springs and crater lakes near the volcano
7. Sulfur dioxide and other gas emissions

VOLCANO HAZARD MAP

HAZARD MAP
- A map that shows areas that are vulnerable or at
risk to a specific hazard
- The red circle represents the 6km-radius PDZ
(permanent danger zone)
- During a Level 1 threat, people are not allowed to
enter/are advised to stay outside the PDZ

VOLCANO ALERT LEVELS