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MANILA, 11 September 2008 (IRIN) - A landslide that destroyed 30 homes in a southern mining village and left 24 people dead and many missing has highlighted the need for extensive geo-hazard mapping in a country that sits on the so-called Pacific Rim of Fire and is prone to natural disasters, officials said.
A massive public information campaign to warn residents of hazards in their area is also vital, disaster experts told IRIN.
Heavy rains on 6 and 7 September brought on by a tropical depression triggered two landslides on the slopes of a mining village in Maco town, in Compostella Valley Province on southern Mindanao Island.
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The Department of Environment and Natural Resources in a report last year said the area was at risk due to poor ground conditions, as well as "unsystematic human intervention, mainly [extensive] logging and mining". It recommended that the villagers be evacuated to safer ground, and a ban on any future resettlement.
The Philippines embarked on a series of geological studies to mitigate impacts of disasters following the massive eruption of Pinatubo volcano in 1991 and a devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake that hit Luzon Island the previous year. Hundreds were killed and thousands were displaced or affected in the incidents, which overwhelmed government agencies.
Lessons learned from the two incidents led to the publishing of a series of monographs and maps that eventually helped government in disaster response, although work in identifying areas that are prone to deadly landslides is still insufficient, environment and disaster relief experts said.