Typhoon Yolanda

An Analysis on the Impact of Natural Disasters and

Effectiveness of Disaster Management

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement on the

Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Course

Submitted by:
J.A. Calica, S.C Comonsad, W.B Cua, C.N. Dagoc,
F.C Hallie Rafols, A.D Resoso

Submitted to:
Mr. Stephen Luri T. Mercado, M.A. T.E.S.L., M.B.A.
2020
Introduction
Tacloban, known as the melting pot of Visayas because of the city's many urban
luxuries, is the most progressive city in Region 8 and the capital of the province of Leyte
(City Government of Tacloban, 2019). The city has a total land area of 201.72 square
kilometers or 20,172 hectares. Determined by the 2015 Census, the city's population
was 242,089 which represented 5.45% of the total population of the Eastern Visayas
region (Philatlast, 2020).

Tacloban is a major tourism hub in the Philippines (City Government of Tacloban,

2019). It yielded 472,300 tourist arrivals in 2015, comprising 44.87% of the regional total
tourist influx (City Government of Tacloban, 2019). Furthermore, Tacloban contributed
about Php 4.05 billion worth of tourist receipts, ranking it for the highest tourist receipts
in 2015 and taking nearly half of the regional tourist receipts (City Government of
Tacloban, 2019).

Typhoons area unit tropical cyclone systems with high-intensity wind speeds. In
step with the intensity scale utilized by the Japan meteorological Agency (JMA), a
tropical cyclone is designated as a hurricane once the sustained wind speed exceeds
118 kilometers, and an excellent hurricane has winds of at least a hundred ninety km h-
1. Super hurricane Haiyan traveled at 30– 40 km h-1 with a most one minute sustained
wind speed of 315 km h−1 (Daniell et al., 2013), reaching class five on the Saffir–
Simpson scale. Hurricane Haiyan hit the tiny nation of Palau inflicting some injury,
however its most intense part was felt by Visayas. Eight out of 17 regions were suffering
from the winds. The foremost compact areas were Samar and Leyte invasion islands,
together with the extremely populated capital town of Tacloban.

Statement of the Problem

Typhoon Haiyan or locally known as Typhoon Yolanda generated a significant
impact on the Philippines. The characteristics of Typhoon Yolanda, the location of the
affected areas, and the materials of homes in those areas are the factors that
contributed to the devastation after the tropical cyclone hit the country.
 Typhoon Yolanda catalyzed a violent storm surge that resulted in 6300 dead,
1061 missing, and 28,689 injured (Lagmay et al., 2015). Compared to most tropical
cyclones, which weaken before they land, it struck Leyte with a wind speed of 160 knots
and a forward speed of 41km/h (Takagi, 2017). The typhoon's winds are 16% greater
than Typhoon Zeb in 1998; additionally, it had stronger winds compared to recorded
storms from 1945 to 2014 (Takagi, 2015). The forward speed of Typhoon Yolanda is 41
km/h, which is near twice as much as the average speed of tropical cyclones (Takagi,
2015).

The areas affected the Philippines, specifically the islands of Leyte and Samar.
The place which felt the most impact was the capital of Leyte, Tacloban City. With the
Philippines' tropical location, it is familiar to experience about 20 typhoons a year
(Vergano, 2013). Leyte is also in a region regularly visited by tropical cyclones over the
years; furthermore, it is on the Central Leyte Fault (Gavilan, 2017).

Socioeconomic reasons and house materials are also factors that relate to the
impact of Typhoon Yolanda. In a field survey report of downtown Tacloban, lightweight
houses resulted in complete collapse (Mas, 2015). The rural areas were the most
vulnerable. Because of its high location and the residents' inability to utilize heavier
materials, their lightweight homes and wooden piles were not able to withstand the
typhoon (Mas, 2015).

Objectives
● To study the case of Typhoon Haiyan or Yolanda and prepare areas where
similar disasters are likely to occur as well as minimize the destruction of those
disasters.
● To device correct and appropriate handling methods when a similar disaster
happens by promoting rehabilitation and long-term solutions.
Recommendation
Being the most exposed country to tropical storms in the world, the Philippines
experiences an average of 20 typhoons a year. The country’s national disaster budget
for the year 2013 was set at $171 million, but was all used up before the Super Typhoon
hit the country. Thus, victims and evacuees were left to scavenge for food and even
resort to looting abandoned malls, all while looking for lost family members and relatives
(Greene, 2013).

The government's preparation and response to disasters remain poor.

Government units and affected communities appeared unprepared for the recent natural
disasters. There has been a lack of transportation to quickly evacuate residents, and a
lack of adequate and permanent evacuation centers. Up until today, evacuation centers
are mainly public schools (Mateo, 2020).

The government should release more funds not just for disaster response but
also for recovery and rehabilitation. In the long-term, the government can invest in
building genuinely sustainable communities. Proposals such as enabling the people to
collectively withstand extreme hazards through steady jobs and income, sturdy homes
and disaster-ready community infrastructure, and sufficient public and social services
that are designed and established to endure calamities must be prioritized.

Although the government increased the 2021 National Disaster Risk Reduction
and Management Fund to P27. 25 billion, history might repeat itself if these funds are
not managed well (Department of Budget and Management, 2020). Budgeting is one of
the most critical functions in government. Creating this spending plan allows the
government to determine in advance whether they will have enough money to meet the
needs of the citizens, especially during calamities.

To the citizens, they must understand that disaster risk management never goes
one-way. Citizens also have roles to fulfill in order to bring their families to safety. From
this small scale to a larger one, constant awareness, cooperation, and efforts can
further bring a larger community to safety. They should always be aware and be up to
date of the current situations of the environment.

In a state of climate change, the planet earth almost seems unpredictable at

times. However, it never hurts to seek information about current events, to anticipate
natural disasters, and to prepare for such instances. Communities and families must
always see to it that they have backup supplies before the disaster, this act ensures that
each household will have enough food and essentials during and after the disaster. In
order to reduce the percentage of injured individuals or even death, citizens must
monitor the weather forecasts regularly every day and should prepare evacuation
measures just in case the need for it arises. In fact, the reason why many people still
experience difficulties during a typhoon is because they were unaware of the disaster.
Since there are Filipino families living near shores, it is best to be more aware of the
occurrence of tropical cyclones and must evacuate immediately. Another long term
solution is the utilization of heavier materials for the construction of houses. Lighter
houses are more susceptible to the destructive consequence of typhoons. Yet, the
biggest reason for lighter materials is the inability for families to afford more stable
materials. Therefore, the government and citizens should cooperate to construct
sturdier homes for the safety of everyone.

References

City Government of Tacloban. (2019). City Profile. Retrieved from City of

Tacloban: https://www.tacloban.gov.ph/city-profile/

Department of Budget and Management. (2020). Status of National Disaster

Risk Reduction and Management Fund. GOVPH.
https://www.dbm.gov.ph/index.php/programs-projects/status-of-national-
disaster-risk-reduction-and-management-fund
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https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/iq/fast-facts-leyte-province-natural-
disasters

Lagmay, F., Mahar, A., & Agaton, R. P. (2015, March 1). Devastating storm
surges of Typhoon Haiyan. ScienceDirect.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S221242091400092
2

Mas, E., Bricker, J., Kure, S., Adriano, B., Yi, C., Suppasri, A., & Koshimura, S.
(2015). Field survey report and satellite image interpretation of the 2013
Super Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. Natural Hazards and Earth
System Sciences, 15(4), 805–816. https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-15-805-
2015

Mateo, J. (2020, January 22). 312 schools still in use as evacuation centers.
Philstar.Com. https://www.philstar.com/other-sections/education-and-
home/2020/01/23/1986948/312-schools-still-use-evacuation-centers

PhilAtlas. (2020). Tacloban. Retrieved from PhilAtlas:

https://www.philatlas.com/visayas/r08/tacloban.html

Takagi, H. (2017, March 1). Track analysis, simulation, and field survey of the
2013 Typhoon Haiyan storm surge. Wiley Online Library.
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Takagi, H., & Esteban, M. (2015, September 22). Statistics of tropical cyclone
landfalls in the Philippines: unusual characteristics of 2013 Typhoon
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Vergano, D. (2013, November 12). 5 Reasons the Philippines Is So Disaster

Prone. National Geographic News.
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/11/131111-philippines-
dangers-haiyan-yolanda-death-toll-rises/