By Charlize Janda

The Philippines’ geographical situation is a huge indicator of its tropical characteristics. Being an archipelago with a string of over 7,100 islands, it is with no doubt that the Philippines’ one-of-a-kind features makes it unlike any other country in the world. This makes its tourism and agriculture sector flourishing in various aspects. Yet, this geographical location also has its downside repercussions, specifically with the nation receiving some of the world’s detrimental natural disasters.

When winds enter oceanic regions with warm water, typhoons are created. As cooler air descends, these winds gather moisture and ascend. Pressure is created as a result, and the winds pick in speed. The winds spin or revolve around an object known as an eye. With nothing else to absorb storm energy before they impact land, the Philippines is situated just above the equator and confronts the western Pacific. The warm, tropical waters that create about 20 typhoons a year serve as fuel for storms. The water temperature in the Philippines is often above 28°C, which is the lowest point at which a typhoon may form, making it the hottest place in the world. Typhoon frequency is expected to rise in response to climate change.

A report shows that over 60% of the population of the Philippines lives in coastal zones, with many of them residing on low-lying coastal islands. Due to the fact that typhoons usually cause storm surges, many Filipinos are greatly affected—signified by the loss of homes, livelihoods, and even lives. Additionally, the Philippines is still a very poor nation, with almost 40% of its citizens living on less than $2 per day, despite recent worldwide attention for the country’s strong economic progress. Because agriculture employs about a third of the workforce and has a high unemployment rate, it is particularly sensitive to adverse weather conditions. In the nation, statistics show that paved roads make up just 20% of all roadways. Poor evacuation protocols and hastily built dwellings exacerbate the intensity of typhoons. Typhoons and inadequate infrastructure, regrettably, reinforce one another. Typhoons destroy bridges, flood control structures, and roadways—exactly the type of destruction that exacerbates subsequent natural catastrophes. In light of this, the nation is in need of a helping hand from its internal resources, the government and its own people.

Crisis Roots

The growing global crisis in the environmental aspect propels the strength of weather disturbances to a much wider range. According to research, since the late 1970s, there have been at least twice as many category 4 and category 5 tropical cyclones—storms with sustained wind speeds of more than 209 km/h and 252 km/h, respectively. The share of super and severe typhoons in East and Southeast Asia has increased, despite the overall number of typhoons being mostly unchanged.

While typhoons in the open ocean have not altered much, those in East and Southeast Asia have grown noticeably stronger. The easiest explanation is to consider warmer seas as having more energy. As a result, when a typhoon arises over a large area of warm ocean, the extra energy gives the storm an extra push. Typhoons of higher intensity have the ability to do greater damage when they arrive, including uprooting trees, demolishing structures, inundating towns, and submerging communities beneath mudslides that result in immense losses. The expense of rescuing ourselves in the future will rise exponentially until we reach a point where it becomes unaffordable if the world doesn’t take significant action. Nothing about what is happening to our weather is merely intellectual, even though dry scientific studies and statistics demonstrate these mounting worries. Now, it is taking place. 

The Philippines in the Hook of the Cyclonic Hurdle

Geographically speaking, the Philippines is truly one of the countries most susceptible to severe weather disturbances, given that the Pacific Ocean is just a neighboring area where typhoons are created. Despite this being known, the country is still suffering severe consequences due to a number of factors, one of which is the lack of disaster preparedness. In a study, almost half of the respondents (47%) said they had not taken any action to get ready for a natural disaster in the last five years. This speaks volumes about how unprepared the nation is for disasters. The primary explanation given by respondents (47.5%) was insufficient funds to prepare for emergencies. Many of them did, however, state that they would prepare by fortifying their homes and purchasing emergency supplies if they had the money. This implies that poverty is still on top of the hierarchy of concerns of millions of Filipinos.

Due to this, the intense reverberations of disasters are not diminished. This makes the typhoons’ effects much more disastrous and injurious, which puts a lot of people’s livelihoods, properties, health, and lives at stake. Initially, the destruction caused by typhoons lead to significant damages to farmlands, affecting agriculture and other sectors of the economy. This affects the financial capabilities of workers in various facets of the nation, both in the short and long terms. An instance of this is the case of Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) when it struck the Eastern Visayas, which was known to be one of the strongest typhoons ever recorded. About 16 million people were impacted by Typhoon Yolanda in terms of their livelihood, the environment, and their ability to eat. Typhoon Yolanda also “destroyed, lost, or disrupted” the lives of 5.9 million people. This also has a lot to say about the destruction of properties due to tropical depressions. In terms of health-related concerns, floods and rainfall brought by typhoons can trigger an array of illnesses and risks. In general, typhoons may increase the chance of an infectious illness epidemic. Medical professionals in the area are accustomed to dealing with such epidemics as they are often indigenous to the affected area. Watery diarrhea, leptospirosis, acute respiratory infections, measles, malaria, and dengue are among the illnesses that are anticipated. In addition, typhoons pose a lot of risks due to destruction of surroundings. Landslides, overflowing floods, and storm surges are among the dangerous phenomena brought by typhoons. In the case of Yolanda, more than 6000 lost lives were reported, 28,626 were wounded, and 1785 were reported missing. This proves that typhoons, no matter their strength, should always be something to be prepared for. Yet, given poverty and the lack of government funding and initiatives, the Philippines is still far behind the goal of becoming a disaster-prepared nation.

Delving on to Daily Denouements

It is certain that rainfalls brought by changing weather conditions impact the daily lives of people even in the simplest manners. One greatly affected by this is the transportation system. In light of this, student commuters of the Ateneo Senior High School (ASHS) are also greatly hassled by these occurrences.

Margaux Vital, grade 11 student of the ASHS and student commuter, expressed her insights on the issue. “Actually, never pa naman  ako na-affect ng weather unless I leave my umbrella. It doesn’t affect me, but it affects so much more people,” Margaux shares. This underscores the varying experiences of commuters when it comes to transportation. “While there are good efforts that lead to a safer disaster risk management, I believe na kulang pa dahil marami ring rural areas na nababaha na hindi natin alam,” she expresses. In disappointment, Margaux also emphasizes that people know little about the livelihood of individuals who suffer these consequences. On another perspective, she hopes that the government orients people regarding the prevention of disasters both in the environmental and social crises instead of promoting resilience afterwards. 

The Government’s Pivotal yet Misused Role

The role of the government in terms of implementation of disaster preparedness initiatives is crucial, given that it plays a central role in coordinating with various agencies and departments with distinct platforms to prepare for, respond to, recover from, and mitigate the impacts of disasters. From an economic perspective, the government’s main duty is to bolster institutions for disaster risk reduction. The national government should promote risk awareness by means of extensive study on catastrophe risks, advancements in technology, education on disaster mitigation, and the practice of emergency response skills.

It is still discernible that the government is acting to prepare for disasters. With the Philippine Disaster Reduction and Management Act otherwise known as RA 10121, the government offers a comprehensive, multi-sectoral, interagency, all-hazard, and community-based approach to disaster risk management through the creation of the National Disaster Risk Management Framework. But an often mentioned problem in Philippine Disaster Management is that line agencies and local government units are not equipped to take on DRRM responsibilities. A few of the causes are a lack of personnel, a lack of technical expertise, a lack of funding, and a lack of technology, such as multi-hazard early warning systems. Policies, standards, and tools notwithstanding, a number of obstacles prevent DRRM and CCA from being mainstreamed in local administration. Inadequate financial and human resources frequently exacerbate a lack of expertise in areas such as data management, development planning, hazard and risk information creation, post-disaster evaluations, etc. Furthermore, financial commitments are not as prioritized during the actual onset of a typhoon. Although the proposed calamity fund for 2023 was at PHP30 billion, higher than the PHP20 billion approved for 2022, there is a lack of transparency regarding the allocation of funds, especially in the actual time of crises. Rather, various preparations are all that are done before the disasters instead of real time responses. 

The “Malasakit at Pagbabago” Card

Still, the government tries to revert and hide its lack of efficiency through emphasizing that “the Filipino that adapts, endures, and triumphs over all adversities.” Yet, this reveals the true weaknesses of the government to disaster preparedness, given that Filipinos are asked to rely on bayanihan and pagmamalasakit, when it is the government that lacks these values given their incompetence to serve the Filipinos better. 

The same scenario regarding Typhoon Yolanda’s occurrence serves as an illustration of the government’s lack of responses. Every year, the nation is nearly always affected by about 20 tropical cyclones. Typhoon Haiyan’s arrival was definitely not unexpected. However, purportedly storm-proof shelters were demolished, and clearly needed help has not materialized. The fact that this storm was just too enormous, with gusts exceeding 200 miles per hour and sea levels soaring across coastal areas, may be the most significant aspect of all. No nation could withstand it unaffected. However, it appears that the Philippines was especially unprepared to handle this situation. 

Sadly, poverty is perhaps one of the easiest reasons for the Philippines’ lack of readiness as well as one of the hardest to solve. Another is that there aren’t as many resources available to the government to build infrastructure that would withstand natural catastrophes and be put to use in relief operations. However, the political structure of the Philippines might make centralized government challenging. Local and provincial administrations are allowed to exercise some degree of autonomy due to the amazing variety of the nation. This promotes political stability, but it also makes it more difficult for the federal government to enact major infrastructure projects or plan a coordinated national response in the event of a crisis. Regrettably, money plays a major role in the preparation gap in the Philippines. National preparation initiatives, infrastructure, and the kind of force that can mobilize so rapidly and broadly are all expensive. However, the distinction also relates to more elusive elements, such as a government’s ability to gain the trust and, when necessary, obedience of its populace, rather than merely deploying helicopters and mowing roads. Given the immense impact that the government could have had, this role must not be compromised.

Implications in the System

The system is still in need of major revisions, but we need to begin as early as now. Initially, a concrete allotment of budget for disaster preparedness activities or initiatives must be carried out. The government must also practice transparency in order to promote accountability and awareness to the citizens that it is serving. In addition, the government should also invest in disaster-resilient architecture and engineering to lessen the detrimental effects of calamities to properties and livelihood. Essentially, better healthcare and emergency systems must be implemented. With the proper coordination of Local Government Units (LGUs) and NGOs, more lives can be saved and less damage to people’s well-being can be accomplished. The communications departments also play a huge role in disseminating information through effective phone alerts and other announcement systems. Subsequently, LGUs should focus on disaster preparedness through encouraging schools, offices, etc. to initiate simulations, drills, training, and seminars for calamity alertness and resilience. 

The old saying goes, “You will never be ready.” Truth be told, there is no country, institution, or place that is truly prepared to combat disasters, as these are naturally occurring and inevitable. With that said, the only thing that everyone can carry out is to prepare. Another saying by Benjamin Franklin goes, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” As Filipinos, we too can create a huge impact with regards to preparedness, resilience, and recovery from calamities. Let’s emphasize that we should not rely solely on government officials and their initiatives, we should also take our own actions and steps towards disaster preparedness. Take into account that in order to achieve disaster preparedness, everyone should be involved and take matters into one’s own hands.