Killer earthquakes: How to be saved

Almost miraculously, a strong earthquake that hit Taiwan a few days ago has minimal number of casualties. Official reports claim that at least nine people were killed, though hundreds were injured as an aftermath of the 7.4 magnitude tremor.

If, God forbids, an earthquake of similar strength would happen in the National Capital Region (NCR) and the adjacent provinces of Bulacan, Pampanga, Tarlac, Laguna, Cavite and Batangas, will we be lucky enough to also suffer only with minimal number of deaths and injuries? Sadly, the quick answer is NO. The overall impact will be catastrophic, which is similar to what happened in Turkey and Syria last year where more than 55,000 died after an earthquake of magnitude 7.8 struck the region.

According to the scientific studies conducted by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in 2014, more than 34,000 can immediately perish if the West Valley Fault System would move and cause a 7.2 magnitude earthquake. Some studies project a larger number of casualties at 54,000, with at least 160,000 seriously injured and at risk of being amongst the initial casualties if not properly attended to by the health emergency system.

Furthermore, it is expected that there would be dozens of sporadic fires razing establishments and thousands of collapsed structures would liter the streets with debris that would make rescue operations difficult. Communications will not be dependable.

There will be riots and unrests in the midst of desperate outcries for help. Food and water supply can be too scarce while lootings and social unrest will be worse than what was experienced after Typhoon Yolanda wreaked havoc in Tacloban City. I thought before that such transgressions would be unexpected amongst Filipinos. This typhoon broke that myth.

Solutions must be rolled out soon. Start focusing on the necessary steps to drastically lessen the number of possible casualties and give a systematic method of handling this potential nightmare.

First, let’s begin in our homes and workplaces. For those who would yet to own or build their houses, check available apps such as HazardHunterPh and