TSUNAMI

There was a tsunami scare in my island garden city of Samal because the Philippine Institute of Volcanology & Seismology (PHIVOLCS) gave a warning for Davao Oriental which is on the side of the Pacific Ocean. A tsunami is an unusually large sea wave produced by volcanic or under sea eruption or landslide, etc. I have visited Davao Oriental many times and yes, the waves are as tall as mountains.One beautiful spot in Mati, Davao Oriental that we love for its waves is Dahican, a place for surfing.

Anyway, they say that tsunami and earthquakes can happen anytime around the pacific ring of fire – from California to Davao Oriental. The last significant tsunami in the Philippines occurred in the Verde Island Passage (between Batangas & Mindoro Island and affecting Puerto Galera) in 1976 and, accordingly, it was a minor one because the waves were just two to three meters high when the wave reached land.

As an islander whose sailor forefathers came from storm battered lands in Eastern Visayas to seek shelter in the island coves in Davao Gulf, I knew very early on that a tsunami will be unheard of in these parts. As I was explaining to the informal settlers in the poblacion seaside of Penaplata : Samal island is almost entirely landlocked with only the southermost tip of the island exposed to the Mindanao and the Celebes seas. Still, I could not allay their fears. In recent memory as splashed on primetime television was the image of the tsunami in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Maldives, Sri Lanka where hundreds of thousands ( 230,000) of people in this Indian Ocean died and so that was the picture that came to their minds. But, to the extent that informal settlers are reflecting on their safety is a good thing because every year, they are at the mercy of strong winds and storm surges brought about by the Southwest monsoons (Habagat) during the months of July, August & September.

There is a need to review the land use plan and zoning of the Island Garden City of Samal because it is one of the premier tourist destinations of the Philippines. The human settlement issues of informal settlers are also true in the coastal areas of Davao City particularly in Isla Verde and the entire stretch up to the next Davao province in the south. Davao City has relocation and resettlement areas. The challenges are how to bring livelihood to these relocation sites. I talk of Samal Island and Davao City as one contiguous space much like talking about the concept of Metro Davao as is the recent drift in touristic planning and drawing boards. After all, Samal Island is a few five minutes away from mainland Mindanao by fastcraft.

In various countries, the areas of about fifty meters from the lowest water mark towards the land are mostly inalienable parts and reserved for beaches and cannot be sites for human settlements. So, human settlements in higher ground should be our antidote to tsunami because if the earthquake happens close to shore, there may only be minutes between the earthquake and the arrival of the first wave. After, the untold sorrow and tragedy of the 2004 tsunami in Asia, we have had many lessons. They are now saying that our abode if near the sea must be at least fifty feet above sea level because at this height, we are already clear of any waves that are headed our way. So, high rise buildings are indicated against tsunami.

And for us in the social development world, as always, we look at the human rights perspective in disasters. For example, orphaned girl children need protection as they can fall prey to human trafficking and violence.