The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) and the
airports under its supervision nationwide joined the nationwide
simultaneous earthquake drill on Thursday.
CAAP spokesperson Eric Apolonio said airport personnel in Laoag,
Tuguegarao, Cauayan, Calapan, Lubang, Bicol, Guiuan, Calbayog, Maasin,
Tacloban, and Pagadian were just some of the participants in the 3rd
Quarter Drill, which aimed to prepare personnel and stakeholders for
the certainty and unpredictability of earthquakes.
The nationwide event emphasizes the preparedness of the Filipino
people in the event of a 7.2-magnitude earthquake. It informs the
people about survival methods and the dos and don’ts before, during,
and after the disaster.
In Metro Manila, should the ‘Big One’ occur, there will be massive
destruction, with 35,000 deaths in the first hour alone, over 100,000
injured, and an economic loss reaching 2.5 trillion pesos.
The drill will allow first responders and emergency personnel of the
national government agencies as well as the local Disaster Risk
Reduction and Management Offices to fine-tune their respective
contingency measures in case of the occurrence of the 7.2-magnitude
tremor.
Experts said Metro Manila remains under threat from the Valley Fault System.
The system is composed of two sections: the 10-km. East Valley Fault,
which covers Rodriguez and San Mateo towns in Rizal, and the 100-km
West Valley Fault, which passes through 42 barangays in the cities of
Makati, Taguig, Marikina, Pasig, Muntinlupa, and Quezon City, and 30
barangays in Bulacan, Rizal, Cavite, and Laguna.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology warned that the
West Valley Fault might trigger the “Big One,” or a 7.2-magnitude
earthquake.
In June, a magnitude 6.3 earthquake hit Calatagan town in Batangas,
with the tremor felt across Luzon, including Metro Manila.