PREPAREDNESS OF RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS FOR THE BIG ONE IN BINONDO, MANILA

MANILA, Philippines Preparedness of Residential Buildings for a Possible

Magnitude 7.2 Earthquake

Introduction

The Philippines, being among the countries situated in the Pacific Ring of Fire (or Pacific
Seismic Belt), is no stranger when it comes to earthquakes. There are 5 major fault lines in the
philippines, namely: (1)Marikina Valley Fault, (2)Western Philippine Fault, (3) Eastern Philippine
Fault, (4)Southern Mindanao Fault, and (5)Central Philippine Fault. The National Capital Region is
located above the aforementioned Marikina Valley Fault.

The Marikina Valley Fault System (MVFS) is comprised of the East and West Valley Faults
(EVF and WVF, respectively). The WVF transects the eastern part of Metro Manila and posed the
most significant earthquake threat to Metro Manila and nearby provinces. Understanding the
frequency of large earthquakes on the WVF and the potential magnitudes are of critical
importance to emergency managers to prepare for and mitigate against the impact of these
infrequent, high consequence events. The recurrence of large earthquakes on the WVF has
previously been estimated at between 400 to 600 years, with considerable uncertainty (Nelson et
al., 2000). Given the length of the fault, it is believed that it could accommodate an earthquake of
up to moment magnitude MW 7.5 base on published fault-scaling relationships (Wells and
Coppersmith, 1994).

According to the Department of Science and Technology - Philippine Institute of

Volcanology and Seismology (DOST-PHIVOLCS), the Big One or an earthquake with magnitude of
no less than 7.2 in the Richter scale may be experienced in our lifetime. Also, there are specific
locations that are considered most vulnerable to said earthquake because of their proximity the
so-called West Valley Fault.

The City of Manila, the second biggest city of National Capital Region by population, is
home to 1.7 million people in 330,000 households, wherein 100,000 of these are classified as
depressed households with some being undocumented, which makes these impoverished
residential areas susceptible to earthquakes.
PREPAREDNESS OF RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS FOR THE BIG ONE IN BINONDO, MANILA

Figure 1. Metro Manila Soil Composition (right) and liquefaction susceptibility map (left)

Manila City's soil composition reveals that 90-95 % of the city is made of Quaternary
Alluvium a mixture of clay, silt and gravel that is loose and not cemented together into solid
rock; this sediment is not suitable for construction of big infrastructure and buildings.

In the course of 400 years in the history of manila, 12 disastrous earthquakes have occured
(June 25, 1599 - July 16,1990) but the most destructive earthquake was the recent July 16, 1990
Earthquake. The latter was detected with a powerful temblor measuring 7.7 Magnitude in the
open-ended richter scale and was said to be the strongest earthquake that ever occurred within
the Cordillera Region. It was estimated that over 1,000 people were trapped and killed by the
damaged buildings. The five-star Hyatt Terraces Plaza sustained the worst damage when its
terraced front collapsed onto the lobby area, killing about 50 people.The Baguio Park Hotel along
Harrison Road was a total wreck. The luxurious Nevada Hotel which is located right across from
the main gate of Camp John Hay was ripped in half by the quake, leaving a huge gash in the middle
of the structure. The Saint Vincent Catholic Church along Naguilian Road was spared by the strong
quake, however a portion of its retaining wall and parking area was damaged and collapsed to the
road below. The church, which has withstood typhoons, bombings during the 2nd World War, and
other disasters, suffered only minor damage.Because of the extensive devastation, Baguio City
was described to be a virtual "war zone." Also, it was running low on water, fuel, food, and other
miscellaneous basic necessities to include much-needed medicines for the injured and sick
people.The three main access roads to Baguio were blocked by landslides that hundreds of
motorists were stuck along the highways. The roads were totally impassable to vehicular traffic.
People desiring to leave the city had no other alternative but to hike down Kennon Road, Marcos
Highway, or Naguilian Road. Different portions of Kennon Road were blocked by landslides. This
condition also made the delivery of critically needed aid to the city impossible. Loakan airport had
to be temporarily closed to commercial flights to allow food, supplies, equipment, and rescue
personnel to be transported by air using military and some privately-owned aircraft.

The devastating event really left a mark in the history of the Philippines. This catastrophe
itself is the main purpose of the study. To serve as a reminder and a walk-up call to the Manileos
PREPAREDNESS OF RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS FOR THE BIG ONE IN BINONDO, MANILA

that not everyday is a happy day, that anytime now a disaster might come out. A disaster that
could bring down buildings, a disaster that could split families, and a disaster that could wipe out
again thousands of Filipinos. We all know that an earthquake cannot be accurately predicted even
with the use of our advanced technology which is why this study is conducted to inform the
unknowledgeable about this Big One for them to prepare, for them to be able to follow the
guidelines immediately, and for them to save their family and even their own lives. A study
conducted with the sole purpose of helping those in the higher and lower grounds of society.

Statement of the Problem

The main objective of the study is to gather information about the readiness of residential
buildings in the city of Manila. Specifically it it is aimed to answer the following:

1. How many residential buildings are there in:

a. Informal Settlers?
b. Legal Homeowners?
2. On the average, how many are living in each residential building?
a. Informal Settlers?
b. Legal Homeowners?
3. Among the respondents, how many are conscious about the safety of their houses during a
7.2 magnitude earthquake?
a. Informal settlers?
b. Legal Homeowners?
4. Based on the 12-point checklist adopted from the JICA and PHIVOLCS, how many houses
are classified safe in
a. Informal settlers?
b. Legal Homeowners?
Scope and Limitation

The Study focuses exclusively on the effects of a possible magnitude 7.2 earthquake
scenario for Residential Buildings that are situated inside the City of Manila. Thus, the variables
taken into account were legal homeowners, business owners and informal settlers located in
Manila with due respect to their respective attributes, Storeys built, Materials used, Age and
Wear, and their knowledge regarding the occurrence of the "Big One" earthquake which were
determined as the factors whether the residential buildings will be able to sustain the damages
"The Big One" may generate.

The researchers conducted the survey of Binondo districts 10 barangays with each having
various amount of households surveyed with a total of 200. The research surveyed barangays 287
- 296. The respondents were engaged in answering the survey questionnaire prepared by the
researchers that is conducted on xx/xx/17. The respondents were considered with utmost
consideration to their respectful rights of free will, privacy, confidentiality, and well being through
their choice and consent whether they would like to be one of the participant on the said survey
questionnaire or would prefer not to. The selection of respondents was divided according the
stratified random sampling as shown below:

Barangay Actual Number of residential Buildings Number of respondents

Population
PREPAREDNESS OF RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS FOR THE BIG ONE IN BINONDO, MANILA

(PSO, 2015) Informal Legal Informal Legal

Settlers Homeowners Settlers Homeowners

287 2049 x x x x

288 1549 x x x x

289 571 x x x x

290 1413 x x x x

291 1383 x x x x

292 3144 x x x x

293 2937 x x x x

294 2415 x x x x

295 1154 x x x x

296 1425 x x x x

table x.x. The list of respondents per barangay

The Instrument used to gather data were adopted from the 12-Point Checklist for an
Earthquake-resistant House by PHIVOLCS and JICA and was validated by the research adviser and
experts.

Significance of the Study

Squatters are a common sight in Metro Manila and likewise the rest of dense residences in
Manila city. The significance of this research is to gather information and give a rough estimation
of the preparedness of Manila City's residential buildings of both legal residents like in
condominiums, villages, barangays etc. and otherwise informal settlers.

As mentioned before, the Marikina Valley Fault System has a possibility of yielding an
upwards of magnitude 6 to 7.2 earthquake in this generation or the next (Solidum, 2013).

A factor of concern is some residential buildings are constructed with cheap materials and
likewise does not follow the national building code of the philippines since the Philippines is a
Third-World Country. This research aims to specify the vulnerability of a residential building of
both documented and undocumented (Squatters). It would specify the best quality of a residential
building in order to resist an earthquake.

To a resident of manila whether informal or not, it is imperative that each should have a
knowledge on whether their houses will sustain a magnitude 7 earthquake and therefore must be
able to know how to safeguard him/herself from the life-threatening hazards brought upon by the
said earthquake.
PREPAREDNESS OF RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS FOR THE BIG ONE IN BINONDO, MANILA

The research revolved around the concern of the safety of the residents in the event of a
7.2 Mw Earthquake with respect to the structural integrity of the house. This research will benefit
the following:
The Local Government Units of Manila
The Residents
PHIVOLCS and JICA
NDRRMC and PAGASA
LGUs Emergency Response Teams

Citations:

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/316877/scitech/science/the-next-big-quake-in-metro-
manila-may-hit-within-our-lifetime

http://ndrrmc.gov.ph/attachments/article/1509/Component_5_Earthquake_Risk_Analysis_Techni
cal%20Report_-_Final_Draft_by_GA_and_PHIVOLCS.pdf

HUDCC unpublished report, 2002;

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/dpu-projects/Global_Report/pdfs/Manila.pdf

Pacific Strategies and Assessment (PSA Group), Nov. 2014, Metro Manila Earthquake Vulnerabilty
Assessment

http://www.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/images/liquefaction/liqhaz_mmla_2001.pdf

http://www.dost.gov.ph/knowledge-resources/news/45-2016-news/906-prepare-for-the-big-one-
dost-makes-valley-fault-atlas-available-online

http://www.cityofpines.com/baguioquake/quake.html