ENDEAVOR
The past year ended not with a bang or a whimper but with a strong whiplash, as described by the Associated Press in this dispatch:
MANILA - Thousands of people in the Philippines remained in emergency shelters in the wake of devastating Christmas flooding, as the death toll climbed to 51 with 19 missing, authorities said Monday.
Images showed residents in southern Misamis Occidental province sweeping away thick mud from the floors of their homes. In the seaside village of Cabol-anonan, coconut trees were uprooted and huts made of light material were nearly flattened.
The Northern Mindanao region bore the brunt of the disaster, reporting 25 deaths, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council. Most of the deaths were from drowning and landslides, and among the missing were fishermen whose boats capsized.
What brought this about was not even a tropical storm or typhoon but another meteorological phenomenon: “A shear line -- the point where warm and cold air meet -- triggered heavy rains in parts of the country last week, causing the floods, the state weather bureau said.
Not less than 22 affected cities and municipalities declared a state of calamity to enable local governments to release emergency funds and expedite rehabilitation efforts.
In 2021, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank issued a series of Climate Risk Country Profiles. In a nutshell, the Philippines’ profile was described:
The Philippines faces some of the highest disaster risk levels in the world, and these are projected to intensify as the climate changes. The country is especially exposed to tropical cyclones, flooding, and landslides.
• The number of tropical cyclones making landfall is steadily increasing, with tropical cyclones appearing to also have greater intensity.
• Sea-level rise is happening at an above-average rate for some parts of the Philippines, exposing up to one million people to flooding from rising sea levels by 2070–2100; investing in adaptation could potentially bring this number down significantly.
• The agricultural sector is especially vulnerable to climate change impacts. Both increased flooding and the increased likelihood of droughts could impact agricultural land. This could contribute towards decreased agricultural productivity.
• Without effective adaptation and disaster risk reduction, climate change is likely to exacerbate high existing levels of income and wealth inequality; poverty alleviation progress will be slowed.
The last three points point to areas of priority attention: rising sea levels; vulnerability of the agricultural sector; and imperatives for adaptation.
Although the projected time frame is far into the future, it is apparent that what happened in northern Mindanao last month was ominous. Coastal communities were suddenly by landslides and floods that brought on memories of the deadly storm surge that hit Leyte and Samar in Typhoon Yolanda’s deadly onslaught nine years ago.
“A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the normal tidal level, and does not include waves.” Such are the manifestations of triggers for widespread natural disasters.
How prepared are our coastal communities? Are there protocols in place for preemptive evacuation? Not so if it’s a “shear line” event that is not a tropical storm for which there are existing alert levels, depending on wind velocity and projected rainfall. Recall that in 2013, there was a low level of awareness on the possible impact of a storm surge --- and this accounted for complacency and unpreparedness that translated into high mortality rates.
Lawmakers are mulling the establishment of a Department for Disaster Resiliency. In my view, what is more important is to foster a high level of disaster awareness and resiliency at the barangay level. The following declaration is definitely reassuring:
“ADB will continue efforts to increase the resilience of vulnerable communities to disasters and climate change risks by linking community-level resilience-building measures to wider investments in community-driven development and comprehensive land use planning. ADB recognizes that while agriculture and natural resources, urban development, transport, and energy are vulnerable to climate change and disasters, they also offer opportunities for implementing adaptation and disaster risk mitigation measures and strategies.”
Notice ADB’s focus on community-level resilience-building measures as well as community-driven development. Filipinos must imbibe and develop a proactive and preventive mindset that builds upon the bayanihan spirit of unity and solidarity in warding off the perils of climate change.