Senate President Francis “Chiz” G. Escudero has asked the Philippine missions to account for all Filipinos in earthquake-hit Myanmar and Thailand and ensure that all possible help is extended to them, as he commiserated with families and victims of the powerful temblor that rocked the neighboring countries.
The Senate President said the Philippine embassies in Yangon and Bangkok should stay on top of the situation in their respective areas of jurisdiction and to provide whatever assistance is needed by the Filipinos working, living or visiting the two nations.
“We still have Filipinos unaccounted for up to now, and as such, we should exert greater efforts to locate them at the soonest possible time. Once the dust has settled and the rescue operations have concluded, we must have a full accounting of the Filipinos who may have been affected by the earthquake and extend every possible assistance as necessary, including psychosocial support for the survivors,” the veteran legislator said.
He said he was shocked at the devastation brought by the 7.7-magnitude earthquake last Friday that left at least 1,700 fatalities and many more missing persons.
“We express our deepest sympathies and condolences to the governments of Myanmar and Thailand and most especially to the families who lost their loved ones to the devastating earthquake,” Senate President Escudero said.
“Both countries have been gracious hosts to our OFWs over a long period of time and as fellow members of the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), we consider them as more than just neighbors, but part of our community of nations,” he added.
After witnessing the impact of a high magnitude earthquake in Myanmar and Thailand, both of which have many similarities with the Philippines in terms of infrastructure, the Bicolano lawmaker said “a fresh inspection of our public and private structures” is in order to ensure the integrity of buildings and bridges in the country, which is situated in the Pacific Ring of Fire that is frequently visited by earthquakes.
“We must see to it that regular inspections are conducted on public infrastructure and on the structures constructed by the private sector, particularly the office and residential buildings that have sprouted over the past decades,” he said.
There are currently three Senate bills—SBN 1181 of Senator Bong Go, SBN 1467 of Senator Bong Revilla, and SBN 1970 of Majority Leader Francis “Tol” Tolentino—seeking to repeal and update Presidential Decree No. 1092 or the Building Code of the Philippines.
The Senate President has also filed SBN 289 to strengthen the National Building Code by requiring building officials of local government units to conduct a comprehensive inspection of all buildings nationwide and to issue certificates of inspection and clearance that these structures conform with the provisions of PD 1092.
The existing Building Code does not deal so much into the requirements of constructing buildings in relation to structural integrity during earthquakes. What is referred to by builders is the National Structural Code of the Philippines (NSCP) that was developed by the Association of Structural Engineers of the Philippines in 2015 as the “referral code” of the PD 1092.
The NSCP requires buildings to be able to withstand strong earthquakes ranging from magnitude 7 to 8.4.
Based on the 2004 joint study of the Japan International Cooperation Agency, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority and the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, the worst-case scenario after a 7.2 magnitude earthquake or what it referred to as the “Big One,” would involve the collapse of 170,000 residential houses, the partial damage of 340,000 residential houses, the deaths of about 34,000 persons, and the injury of 114,000 more.
It also noted that fire will break out and burn approximately 1,710 hectares and placed the number of possible deaths to 18,000 more people because of this secondary disaster.
“We need to take seriously disaster risk reduction and management initiatives at all times that have long been funded in our annual budget because disaster can strike without warning,” the Senate leader said. #
