Phivolcs pushes strict regular inspection of houses, high-rises

In the wake of the devastating quake that hit Haiti, state seismologists on Sunday pushed for regular inspection of houses and high-rise buildings to make sure they are safe. Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) director Renato Solidum Jr. said this is aside from regular quake drills for civilians. “Dapat patuloy tayo magsanay at lalong siguraduhin ng building officials sa local level na ang tinatayong residential buildings ay maayos. Ang construction ng high-rise dapat tinitingnan ng building officials at professional engineering (We must always conduct drills and have officials at the local level ensure residential structures are constructed well. And building officials and professional engineers must supervise the construction of high-rise buildings)," Solidum said in an interview on dzBB radio. He said that while the Building Code is strict and on par with those in countries like the United States, Japan and Canada, authorities must make sure it is followed strictly. Solidum particularly voiced concern over residential structures that are less than four stories high. He cited information indicating many of them were not designed by engineers. “Ang residential buildings aking pakiusap (My particular appeal is for authorities to ensure the safety of residential buildings)," he said. Potential killer quake In an interview with dzBB last week, Solidum cited earlier studies showing that Metro Manila may be hit with a potential magnitude-7.2 quake from the movement of the Marikina Fault (West Valley Fault System). He said they are implementing a program where GPS devices are positioned at key areas of the fault, so movements in the fault can be tracked. Solidum, however, admitted the possibility of such a big quake as the fault has not moved in a long time. "Pag ang fault di kumikilos, nagiipon yan ng enerhiya. Kung umiipon ng enerhiya yan ay delikado (If a fault has not been moving for a long time, it may be building up energy and release it later on. That is potentially dangerous)," he said. In contrast, he said other faults in the Philippines, such as the one in Leyte, had been moving and causing relatively weak earthquakes. Worst-case scenario While Solidum did not elaborate on the “big quake" that might be set off by the movement of the Marikina Fault, an impact study (2000 to 2004) conducted by a consortium (including Phivolcs) showed that if a 7.2-magnitude quake hits Metro Manila, it would paralyze the country’s economy as the National Capital Region is the center of government, finance, commerce and social activities. [see: MMEIRS 2000 to 2004] “The worse-case scenario would be a magnitude-7.2 movement along the West Valley Fault system. This scenario would result in severe shaking and widespread liquefaction in different areas in the metropolis. Other scenarios included movement along a fault near Manila Bay similar to the 1863 (Magnitude-6.5) earthquake and another is a M 7.9 earthquake along the Manila Trench," the Metro Manila Earthquake Impact Reduction Study (MMEIRS) concluding report said. In 2004, according to the MMEIRS report, Metro Manila generated over 30 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product. The consortium that conducted the MMEIRS was composed of the Phivolcs, Metro Manila Development Authority and the Japan International Cooperation Agency. - LBG, GMANews.TV