CHMT Laboratory Situation Analysis

COMMUNITY CASE NUMBER 2 – SAQUONA ISLAND

Saquona is an island province located in the middle of the archipelago of Siklona. Its
northern and eastern part is lined by beaches with varying colors of sand. Whale sharks
also abound in the area. In the northeastern part of the island is an active volcano that is
known for its perfect cone shape and violent eruptions. Fishing and serving as tourist
guides to whale watchers and volcano climbers are the main occupation in this side. The
southern part is mostly commercial in nature. This is where government offices and
education and business centers are located. This is also the seat of government. A major
earthquake fault traverses this area. The western part is the agricultural hub of the
province. This is where rice, vegetables and other food staples are grown. Backyard
poultries and piggeries are common. There are two main raisers of cows that can
supplies beef to the province. Farm to market roads have been constructed to make it
easier for the farmers to ply their goods. A mountain range traverses one fourth of the
western boundary of the province. There are two indigenous tribes that live on the
mountains. They are used to life in the mountains and are experts in jungle survival,
search and rescue. The local Red Cross Chapter has trained their elders on basic life
support. On several occasions, they have been tapped by the province to assist in
rescue operations during disasters. They also know Morse Code.

The structural integrity of residences and major infrastructures (building, roads and
bridges) have not been evaluated in the last 20 years. There are old houses scattered in
the whole province that have been built more than 200 years ago. These houses were
part of the province’s tourist attraction. Almost all can be rented by local and foreign
tourists at a very low fee.

The province has a total population of 1,000,000. It has two cities and eight
municipalities. There is no major airstrip in the province because the governor wants to
maintain the pristine environment of the province. The province is accessible by a 30
minute boat ride from the mainland. Supplies and other commodities are brought in by
sea.

The province is also often visited by typhoons. The volcano has a major eruption, on the
average, of every 5 – 7 years. However, the last major earthquake, with a 7.2 magnitude,
happened 75 years ago. Fires seldom happen. As such the province has formulated a
policy on disaster response that has been proven to be effective in the last five years.
Policies for early warning (typhoons and floods) and evacuations have been passed and
strictly implemented. Warning devices from the very crude (bells) to the most
sophisticated have been installed on critical areas in the country. A core team of
community members are trained on rescue, response and basic first aid. They consist of
students, barangay officials, out of school youths and volunteer groups.
Evacuation centers have been built away from areas that are flood prone, landslide
prone or those within the 5-to-10-meter danger zone in the fault line. These facilities have
provisions for breastfeeding women, those giving birth, women’s desk, and separate
toilet and bathing facilities for males and females. Each city and municipality have their
own disaster management office that oversees preparedness, mitigation, response and
recovery. However, most of these evacuation centers have been built near the
“kapitolyo” of the municipality or city. There are few or none built-in far-flung barangays
and those near the coastal areas. There is one ambulance per barangay.

The province has maximized its disaster fund to purchase equipment, logistics and
supplies. Coordination of various agencies have been put in place. Drills are conducted
in schools and government offices every now and then, However, these are seldom
done in private, business establishments and in communities.

The city’s water supply is supplied by two water concessionaires. However, deep wells
(either using hand pump or open dug wells) are still the main water source for the rural
areas. Some have crude rain harvesting facilities in their homes which they make use of
for various purposes other than drinking. Straining and boiling their water are the only
methods known to the community on how to make their water supply potable. Water
analysis is not regularly done.

Electricity is supplied by power companies managed by the government. The province

Almost all have access to sanitary toilets. Those located in the cities and near the
municipal capital have at least one toilet in their homes. Coastal and farm communities
have communal toilets of pit privies.

A review of the province’s health situation showed that the leading causes of morbidity
across all ages is pneumonia. This is followed by hypertension, diabetes and all forms of
cancer. Diarrhea ranks fifth and is common in the rural areas. Among children, diarrhea
and malnutrition still remain as top health issues that needs to be addressed,

There are 2 to three health centers in each of the eight municipalities and eight in each
of the two cities. Regardless of the population served, each has a staff of one physician,
one dentist, one nurse, two to three midwives, one sanitation inspector, and one utility
aide. They are trained on first aid and basic life support. They have received training on
the special reporting during disasters and emergencies, but past experiences showed
that this was not followed. As such, sudden rises in leptospirosis following flooding or
increasing cases of diarrhea and upper respiratory tract infections that occur in
evacuation centers and communities were not detected and averted early. The local
health office comes to know about this because of reports at the regional or complaints
coming from those in the evacuation centers. There is at least one government hospital
in the municipalities. There are a total of seven big private hospitals distributed across the
two cities.
Vaccine coverage of all infants is between 80% to 85% (Acceptable level is at 95%).
Despite this, there were no outbreaks of vaccine preventable diseases that were noted.

On the third week of November, the national weather tracking agency noted a low-
pressure area at the eastern side of the archipelago that appears to be on track to enter
the Siklona’s area of responsibility. By the fourth week, the low-pressure area has
intensified into a typhoon packing minimum winds of 250 kph near the center with
gustiness reaching 275 to 300 kph and moving at a speed of 11 kph. Calculating the
possible path showed that it will hit Saquona province by early Saturday or Sunday.
People were also warned of storm surges. Local news agencies featured weather experts
to explain what a storm surge is. However, since they were used to typhoons, people did
not pay that much attention to the information provided. They associated storm surge
as synonymous with a tsunami. They have had two previous tsunamis and they said that
they will closely monitor their shoreline for early signs of a possible tsunami.

The provincial government sent communications to its two cities and eight municipalities
to prepare for the incoming typhoon. That was on Monday. Since the weather was
sunny, not much attention was paid to it. By Wednesday, rainshowers started to occur.
The mayor of Maligalig, a coastal town at the eastern portion decided to implement a
forced evacuation of its constituents. He ordered the fisherfolks to take their boats to a
warehouse near the municipal hall located in the center of the municipality. He
coordinated with the local police and military to provide transportation and security and
oversee evacuation efforts. All livestocks were likewise transferred to the municipal plaza
where temporary shelter were provided. After securing their homes, the townsfolk were
transferred to also evacuated. Some opted to stay with relatives in other municipalities or
in the city. Police and military patrolled the coastal area to ensure that no one was left
nor went back and to prevent looting. By the late evening of Thursday, the coastal area
was clear of its constituents. Emergency purchase of food and water was also done.

The local chief executive of the neighboring town, Mabilis also ordered an evacuation of
his constituents. However, he left to the people’s decision when to do so. He sent
government and military engineers to oversee the manner the community is securing
their homes, roofs and other belongings. Those who decided to evacuate were
transported to the designated evacuation center. A contingency plan was discussed
among those who decided to stay behind. They were to go a cave near their
community in case things get worse. Each of the families, whether they are at the
evacuation center or in the community, were given food packs to last for an average of
four days. The police patrolled the area to prevent looting.

Those living in landslide and flood prone areas in the western part and flood prone areas
in the business hub were also requested to evacuate. Food and water provisions were
given, and they were brought to their designated evacuation centers. Churches of
various denominations opened their doors to evacuees.

The provincial government held daily meetings of all its mayors since the announcement
was made for an update on the activities that were being implemented. All logistics for
disaster (manpower, transportation, equipment, etc) were mobilized. Hospitals and their
personnel were put on standby. No assistance from the provincial government was
given to the cities and municipalities. Confident of their preparations and based on their
previous experiences, they did not alert the national government.

Typhoon Signal Number 4 was raised on the late evening of Friday. On the early morning
of Saturday, the typhoon made a landfall. Due to its speed, it took two hours to traverse
the whole province. At around this time, people in the two-city felt as if the ground was
shaking. They attributed this as part of the weather disturbance that is currently plaguing
them. Rumbling sounds were heard but the people thought this was the sound of the
howling wind and debris flying. By 10:00 AM , the typhoon signal was lowered to Signal
Number 3. The Mayors of all cities and municipalities started an ocular inspection of their
locality. However, in the municipalities of Maligalig and Mabilis, storm surges started to
happen especially in the coastal areas. By 3:00 PM, the Typhoon Signal was lowered to 2
and semblance of rescue operations were already on going.

The scene that greeted the people early Sunday morning shocked everyone. Their
previous experiences during disasters did not prepare them for this, The whole coastal
town of Mabilis and Maligalig were wiped out, there was not a single house left standing.
Despite this, there was only one death noted in Maligalig, a 78-year-old male who died
of heart attack due to the stress of the event. Mabilis presented a different picture. There
were 45 people dead, hundreds injured, 16 missing. There were those who sought refuge
in the nearby cave.

In the southernmost part of the province, there were 15 casualties coming from 2 families
whose houses were buried in a landslide. Around 70% of the agricultural land was
submerged in flood water. Trees in the mountains were uprooted. Part of the landslide
were trunks of cut trees.

Those living in the city were shocked to discover that some of their buildings collapsed.
These included some of the malls, business establishments, schools and homes. Only later
did they found out that a 6.0 magnitude earthquake also occurred during the height of
the storm. Hundreds were missing and buried in the rubbles. Surprisingly, it was the old
houses and buildings that sustained minor damages.

All across the province, major roads were destroyed and bridges damaged. All local
chief executives and the governor were caught flat footed. Major communication lines
were cut. There were no power nor water supply.

All health centers and government hospitals sustained major damages. Only four of the
private hospitals were functional. Everyone was trying to find a way on how they can get
help.