Collapsed Cebu structures in Project NOAH’s hazard maps

All structures that collapsed during the magnitude 6.9 earthquake in Cebu on Sept. 30 had already been identified as high risk in the hazard maps of Project NOAH, an expert from the University of the Philippines said.

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UP Resilience Institute executive director Mahar Lagmay led a team of engineers in assessing the extent of damage in northern Cebu and in recommending safety measures to local and national authorities.

“A majority of the damaged houses were not as severe as what I imagined before doing fieldwork. Social media made me think that many houses crumbled or were toppled by the earthquake,” Lagmay noted on Facebook.

He also learned that “all the collapsed structures that they documented were already on the hazard maps of Project NOAH.”

“Three were built on waterways, one on a steep slope and one along the coast underlain by sediments,” he noted.

Launched in 2012, Project NOAH (Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazard) was a government program that utilized science and technology to identify areas prone to natural disasters and empower local governments and communities to prepare for and reduce disaster risks.