Super Typhoon Bopha and the Mayo River Debris-Flow Disaster, Mindanao, Philippines, December 2012

Category 5 (C5) Super Typhoon Bopha, the world’s worst storm of 2012, formed abnormally close to the West Pacific Equator, and Bopha’s Mindanao landfall has the record equatorial proximity for C5 storms. Bopha generated a debris flow that buried 500 ha of New Bataan municipality and killed 566 people. New Bataan, established in 1968, had never experienced super typhoons and debris flows. We describe the respective histories of New Bataan and Super Typhoon Bopha; debris flows; and how population growth and unwise settlement practices contribute to Philippine “natural” disasters. The historical record of Mindanao tropical cyclones yields clues regarding how climate change may be exacerbating near-equatorial vulnerability to typhoons. Existing models of future typhoon behavior do not apply well to Mindanao because they evaluate only the tropical cyclones that occur during the main June–October typhoon season, and most Mindanao tropical cyclones occur in the off season. The models also ignore tropical depressions, the most frequent—and commonly lethal—Mindanao cyclones. Including these in annual tallies of Mindanao cyclones up to early 2018 reveals a pronounced and accelerating increase since 1990. Mindanao is susceptible to other natural hazards, including other consequences of climate change and volcanic activity

Predicting Filipino Mothers\u27 and Fathers\u27 Reported Use of Corporal Punishment From Education, Authoritarian Attitudes, and Endorsement of Corporal Punishment

The relations of education, authoritarian childrearing attitudes, and endorsement of corporal punishment to Filipino parents\u27 reported use of corporal punishment were examined using two waves of data. Structured interviews using self-report questionnaires were conducted with 117 mothers and 98 fathers from 120 families when their children were 8 years old, and when their children were 9 years old. Path analyses showed that, among mothers, higher education predicted lower authoritarian attitudes, which in turn predicted lower reports of corporal punishment use. Among fathers, higher education predicted lower endorsement of corporal punishment, which in turn predicted lower reports of its use. Results suggest that education has an indirect relation to use of corporal punishment through parenting cognitions, and highlight distinctions in Filipino mothers\u27 and fathers\u27 parenting roles

Livelihood and vulnerability in the wake of Typhoon Yolanda: lessons of community and resilience

Livelihood strategies that are crafted in ‘extra-ordinary’ post-disaster conditions should also be able to function once some semblance of normalcy has resumed. This article aims to show that the vulnerability experienced in relation to Typhoon Yolanda was, and continues to be, directly linked to inadequate livelihood assets and opportunities. We examine the extent to which various livelihood strategies lessened vulnerability post-Typhoon Yolanda and argue that creating conditions under which disaster survivors have the freedom to pursue sustainable livelihood is essential in order to foster resilience and reduce vulnerability against future disasters. We offer suggestions to improve future relief efforts, including suggestions made by the survivors themselves. We caution against rehabilitation strategies that knowingly or unknowingly, resurrect pre-disaster vulnerability. Strategies that foster dependency, fail to appreciate local political or ecological conditions or undermine cooperation and cohesion in already vulnerable communities will be bound to fail. Some of the livelihood strategies that we observed post-Typhoon Yolanda failed on some or all of these points. It is important for future policy that these failings are addressed

Urban transport planning of General Santos City

General Santos City has a problem with regard to the service of tricycles in the city. Due to their proliferation, there is a need for the sub division of the city into several zones that would limit the area of service coverage of tricycles to a specific zone. Tricycles have been in the road for a long time and due to the absence of fixed routes, they have been the cause of many traffic problems such as traffic congestion in major intersections of General Santos City. With the implementation of a fixed zone tricycle system, traffic jams in major road could be avoided which would result in a faster travel time and could help provide order in the city\u27s public transport system. The study involves gathering the opinion of commuters and drivers about the transportation system of the city. Using EMME software, a model of the city was simulated in determining the area that has the biggest amount of trips. From there, a model was made where the proposed zoning system was simulated. The survey showed that commuters and drivers would prefer to have zones for tricycles in the city. The urban transport modeling showed that the volume of vehicles is higher with most trips using the tricycles when they travel in the city. With the study of the choice of mode, it was observed that the tricycles were really the most used type of transport in General Santos city. The volume counts also showed that tricycles have the highest volume passing through a section as compared to other mode transports Analyzing the model without the fixed zones, a new formulated zoning for General Santos city was proposed which is more suitable in terms of vehicular flow, travel speed, and travel time

Imaging ground surface deformations in post-disaster settings via small UAVs

Abstract Small unmanned aerial vehicles have been seeing increased deployment in field surveys in recent years. Their portability, maneuverability, and high-resolution imaging are useful in mapping surface features that satellite- and plane-mounted imaging systems could not access. In this study, we develop and apply a workplan for implementing UAV surveys in post-disaster settings to optimize the flights for the needs of the scientific team and first responders. Three disasters caused by geophysical hazards and their associated surface deformation impacts were studied implementing this workplan and was optimized based on the target features and environmental conditions. An earthquake that caused lateral spreading and damaged houses and roads near riverine areas were observed in drone images to have lengths of up to 40 m and vertical displacements of 60 cm. Drone surveys captured 2D aerial raster images and 3D point clouds leading to the preservation of these features in soft-sedimentary ground which were found to be tilled over after only 3 months. The point cloud provided a stored 3D environment where further analysis of the mechanisms leading to these fissures is possible. In another earthquake-devastated locale, areas hypothesized to contain the suspected source fault zone necessitated low-altitude UAV imaging below the treeline capturing Riedel shears with centimetric accuracy that supported the existence of extensional surface deformation due to fault movement. In the aftermath of a phreatomagmatic eruption and the formation of sub-metric fissures in nearby towns, high-altitude flights allowed for the identification of the location and dominant NE–SW trend of these fissures suggesting horst-and-graben structures. The workplan implemented and refined during these deployments will prove useful in surveying other post-disaster settings around the world, optimizing data collection while minimizing risk to the drone and the drone operators

The December 2012 Mayo River debris flow triggered by Super Typhoon Bopha in Mindanao, Philippines: lessons learned and questions raised

Category 5 Super Typhoon Bopha, the world's worst storm of 2012, formed abnormally close to the Equator, and its landfall on Mindanao set the record proximity to the Equator for its category. Its torrential rains generated an enormous debris flow in the Mayo River watershed that swept away much of the village Andap in the New Bataan municipality, burying areas under rubble as thick as 9 m and killing 566 people. Established in 1968, New Bataan had never experienced super typhoons and debris flows. This unfamiliarity compounded the death and damage. We describe Bopha's history, debris flows and the Mayo River disaster, and then we discuss how population growth contributed to the catastrophe, as well as the possibility that climate change may render other near-Equatorial areas vulnerable to hazards brought on by similar typhoons. Finally, we recommend measures to minimize the loss of life and damage to property from similar future events