Cebu earthquake exposes fault lines in Philippines' disaster readiness

A week after a 6.9-magnitude earthquake tore through northern Cebu in central Philippines, families are still sleeping in open fields and makeshift tents, too afraid to return home as aftershocks continue to shake the ground.

- Mara Cepeda Philippines Correspondent

Across the province, more than 18,000 houses were damaged and in many towns, even the evacuation centres meant to keep people safe have cracked. The earthquake killed 72 people, with nearly 300 injured and more than 170,000 affected in Cebu. The government estimates that some 3 billion pesos (S$67 million) worth of infrastructure in the province was damaged.

The scenes of displacement and cracked shelters have laid bare the Philippines' fragile disaster readiness, in which buildings fail, evacuation centres crumble, and families are left exposed each time disaster strikes. Despite laws mandating resilient infrastructure, experts say many towns remain unprepared for hazards that are both predictable and preventable.

San Remigio Mayor Mariano Martinez said the local government had to set up two "tent cities" for nearly 2,000 displaced residents because they could not use the town's official evacuation centres - typically multipurpose halls, school buildings or basketball gyms - until engineers had inspected the damage.

"Right now, none is being used. We still have to check if they are structurally sound. We see cracks, we see damage, and structural engineers really have to come down first to assess and tell us that these buildings are safe," Mr Martinez told The Straits Times on Oct 3.

Even San Remigio's municipal hall remains off-limits, as the earthquake also caused fissures in its walls.

The authorities have also discovered several sinkholes across the town, prompting more evacuations.

"(The residents of) those houses that are across the sinkholes are now being asked to leave," Mr Martinez said, warning that the number of displaced families could still rise as ground fissures continue to appear.