A disaster is a damaging event that occurs suddenly and involves loss of life and property.

It can be of two types,

natural and man-made.
Natural disasters can destroy a whole community in an instant. Examples of natural disasters are volcanic
eruptions, tsunamis, earthquakes, and typhoons which are destructive to people's lives.
Man-made disasters on the other hand are caused by human beings. Some of the man-made disasters are bomb
explosions, terrorism, wars, leakage of poisonous chemicals, pollutions, industrial accidents, and epidemics. They
are identified as man- made disasters because they happen due to human actions and not by natural forces.
What is the difference between hazard and disaster?
A hazard is a dangerous situation or event that carries a threat to humans. A disaster is an event that harms
humans and disrupts the operations of society. Hazards can only be considered disasters once it affected humans.
If a disaster happened in an unpopulated area, it is still a hazard.

The Human Effect of Natural and Man-Made Disasters

1. Displaced Populations

One of the most immediate effects of natural disasters is population displacement. When countries are ravaged by
earthquakes or other powerful forces of nature, many people need to abandon their homes and seek shelter in
other regions. A large influx of refugees can disrupt accessibility of health care and education, as well as food
supplies and clean water.

2. Health Risks

Aside from the obvious immediate danger that natural disasters present, the secondary effect can be just as
damaging. Severe flooding can result in stagnant water that allows breeding of waterborne bacteria and malaria-
carrying mosquitoes. Without emergency relief from international aid organizations and others, death tolls can rise
even after the immediate danger has passed.

3. Food Scarcity

The aftermath of natural disasters affects the food supplies. Thousands of people around the world are hungry
because of destroyed crops and loss of agricultural supplies, whether it happens suddenly in a storm or gradually in
a drought. As a result, food prices rise reducing families’ purchasing power and increasing the risk of severe
malnutrition or worse. The impacts of hunger following an earthquake, typhoon or hurricane can be tremendous,
causing lifelong damage to children’s development.

4. Emotional Aftershocks

Natural disasters can be particularly traumatic for young children. Confronted with scenes of destruction and the
deaths of friends and loved ones, many children develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a serious
psychological condition resulting from extreme trauma. Left untreated, children suffering from PTSD can be prone
to lasting psychological damage and emotional distress.

Here are some ways on how to plan ahead of a disaster:

1. Check for hazards at home.
2. Identify safe place indoors and outdoors
3. Educate yourself and family members
4. Have Disaster kits/supplies on hand.
5. Develop an emergency communication plan.
6. Help your community get ready.
7. Practice the Disaster Preparedness Cycle

The Different Perspectives of Disaster

1. Physical perspective
Calamities are phenomena that cause great physical damage in a community infrastructure, its people and their
properties, e.g. houses and environmental sources of living. These cited effects of a disaster can be easily
measured and the most common.
Natural disasters generally affect the physical infrastructural facilities, agricultural productivity and even lead to
loss of life and cause damage to property. Various factors influence the effects of a disaster on a country among
them are the magnitude of the disaster, the geography of the area affected, and the recovery efforts directed
towards reducing the immediate effects of a disaster.

Effects of Physical Disasters

- Injuries
- Physical disabilities or illness
- Sanitation
- Damage in infrastructure

2. Psychological Perspective

Victims of disasters may suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and other serious mental health
conditions, which are not being given much attention to by the authorities or even by the victims, themselves.
(This may be sensitive statement)
Disasters are mostly unpredictable, which leave the victims in a state of shock. They tend to deny the loss and try
to escape from reality. Being in a denial state makes the victims more vulnerable to stress, anxiety, and other
different maladaptive reactions. Death of a closed one also leaves the victim in a state of insecurity because the
sense of love, attachment and belongingness are deprived.

Psychological effects of a Disaster:

distress hopelessness
intrusion/avoidance emotional effects
hatred/revenge cognitive Effects
dependence/insecurities physical Effects
grief/withdrawn/isolation interpersonal effect
guilt feeling helplessness
lack of trust
3. Socio-cultural Perspective

Filipinos are generally known as “matiisin”, resourceful, helpful, optimistic, and prayerful. These characteristics are
manifested in the country’s recent fight against COVID19.Due to the National Health Emergency, Enhanced
Community Quarantine (ECQ) prevailed in the whole country. A lot of people temporarily lost their jobs, some
people stranded in different regions, repatriated OFWs were held in different quarantine facilities in Metro Manila,
and all people were restricted to go out of their homes for months. As a result, most Filipino families would rely on
government’s help for them to get by. However, limited resources and aids from the government make people find
possible ways to survive amid the pandemic.

These traits help a lot of Filipinos to survive the challenge of COVID19 in the country. To people who are used to
natural calamities like typhoons, flash floods, and volcanic eruptions most citizen would find contentment with
what they have at the moment. The culture of “malalampasan din natin ‘to..” belief and “ bahala na and Diyos”
syndrome give hope to most Filipino in the midst of a disaster. Such perspective helps a lot especially those who
belong to the marginalized sector to be hopeful and continue fighting against any challenge at hand. Their belief
that a help from someone or from God would arrive at a time they most needed. It also helps most people survive
a lot of oddities in life.
Socio-Cultural Effect of Disasters
➢ change in individual roles
➢ disruption of social relationships and personal connections

4. Economic Perspective

Disasters affect the economic condition of a community because they reduce local and international trade. It can
also partially or totally paralyze a country’s transportation system, just like what happened in the COVID19
pandemic.Implementation of a partial and total shut down of local business operations result to a lot of people
losing means of living.
Economic Effects of Disasters
- loss of life
- unemployment
- loss of property
loss of household articles
- loss of crops
- loss of public infrastructure

5. Political Perspective

Natural disasters are commonly thought to be less politically argumentative than armed conflicts, yet a closer look
shows that both the effects of a natural disaster and the resulting distribution of humanitarian aid are profoundly
linked to politics.
Just as vulnerability to disasters is mediated by the political system of a country, disasters can have major
consequences for political stability and political legitimacy (Hörhager, July 2017. Since agencies of government
have a significant role to play in directing disaster preparedness, prevention and recovery. Social systems establish
vulnerability to natural disasters and governments are often considered to be responsible for the disaster effects.
Political Effects of a Disaster
- People who have trust in political institution will assess the government’s risk assessments as credible and accept
their hazard policies (Johnson 1999)
- Low level of trust in public institutions therefore means that citizens may ignore the recommendations and
disregard the information provided by these institutions (McCaffey 2004).
- If individuals are confident that they will receive sufficient aid from the government when a disaster occurs, they
might not be motivated to take measures on their own (King and Kang 2000).

6. Biological Perspective

The disturbing effects caused by a prevalent kind of disease or virus in an epidemic or pandemic level is known as
biological disaster.
(a) Epidemic Level: Biological disaster affects large numbers of people within a given community or area. Ex:
Dengue.
(b) Pandemic Level: Biological disaster affects a much large region, sometime spanning entire continents or the
globe
ex. Swine Flue
Biological disasters can wipe out an entire population at a short span of time.
Example of it is the COVID19 pandemic which infected millions in less than a month and left thousands of deaths in
the same duration. Viral respiratory infections can lead to anything from a mild cough that lasts a few weeks or
months to full-blown persistent wheezing or asthma (Martin, 2020). He added that when there is a severe
respiratory infection, recovery can be prolonged with a general increase in shortness of breath— even after normal
lung function returns. Since COVID19 is a respiratory disease, the public is advised by health authorities to do
health precaution to prevent social contamination. Examples are: observing physical distancing, appropriate
washing of the hands, wearing of mask at all times once outside of one’s home, and boosting one’s immune
system.
COVID19 patients who have strong immune system can likely soon recover from the disease. Also, those who
follow the health precaution strictly have less chance of being infected. As such, the effects of a biological disaster
can be reduced.
Effects of Biological Disasters
➢ loss of lives
➢ public demobilization
➢ negative economic effect
➢ unemployment
➢ hunger

Vulnerability Defined
Vulnerability is a state of being at risk. According to Republic Act 10121 also known as ‘Philippine Disaster Risk
Reduction and Management Act of 2010’, vulnerability is defined as the characteristics and circumstances of a
community, system or resource that make it susceptible to the damaging effects of a hazard. With all the identified
hazard at home, there is a possibility that some family members might be susceptible or prone to the accident due
to the presence of hazard.
Vulnerability is also situation specific. This means that if a specific province is prone to earthquake, it does not
mean that all localities on that province is vulnerable to it. The vulnerability of different towns or cities or even
provinces differ in the way they prepare for the hazard and the amount and type of resources they have in order
prevent and manage it. To lessen vulnerability means to make the community prepared and ready for the possible
damaging effect of the hazard. This further means that to make the community less vulnerable, it must be resilient.
So, to develop resiliency at home, you should first identify the hazards and be prepared all the time for the
possible outcome and respond immediately.
Moreover, it is also hazard specific. A community that is vulnerable to earthquake hazard does not necessarily
mean that it is also vulnerable to typhoons. Hazards have different traits that can influence the disasters possible
to happen.

Factors affecting vulnerability of one’s community:

1. Population density near a hazard event.
• Population differs from population density.
• Population refers to the number of individuals inhabiting in a particular space at the same time. If people are well
distributed, there is lesser effect of disaster.
• Population density refers to the number of individuals living in an area in relation to the size of an area. If
population density is high, it means that the number of individuals is high but the space is very small. In that case,
if fire broke in that area, there is little space for the population to escape quickly and easily. So, crowded
communities have higher vulnerability to hazards.
• The primary consideration is not the population size but the population density.

2. Capacity and efficiency to reduce Disaster Risk.

• Community that is less vulnerable has the capacity to reduce disaster risk because;
1. It can provide accessibility and availability of services and facilities during and after disaster.
2. It has the ability to anticipate, adapt, and respond to possible disaster.
• Is it appropriate to say that The Philippines is less vulnerable to typhoon? Nowadays, our country has advanced
technology to predict super typhoon and several municipalities already provided evacuation centers to provide
temporary housing for victims when disaster occur.

Vulnerabilities of different elements are determined due to its exposure to particular and specific hazard.
Physical vulnerability includes population density levels, place of a settlement, the site design, and materials used
for infrastructure and housing. When hazardous events occur, normally physical elements are severely damaged.
For example, UP Visayas buildings were totally destroyed during the super typhoon Yolanda in 2008 leaving the
structure totally damaged. Another example is the decreased in population density like what happened in Baguio
during the 1990 earthquake in North Luzon when a lot of people were injured and died.

Social vulnerability happens due to inability of people, organization, and societies to prevent severe effects from
hazards because of the expected behavior in social interactions, institutions, and system of cultural values
communications were cut off when cell sites shutdown or disruption of transport system due to inability of small
vehicles to pass through the flooded areas or unpassable roads and bridges. With some difficulties in the delivery
of services such as relief goods and medicines, a lot of problems occurred like shortage of food and spread of
infectious diseases. Therefore, when social elements were exposed to hazard, these may lead to disruption of
normal processes and activities in the community.
Level of economic vulnerability is based on the economic status of individuals, communities, and nations. The
poorer the country, the more vulnerable to disasters because they lack the funds or budgets to build sturdy
structures and put other engineering measures in place which protect them from being affected by disasters. So,
we can say that Philippines is more vulnerable to an event such as earthquake compared to Japan. Though both
countries are exposed to earthquake hazard because both are located in the Pacific ring of fire, but due to
differences in economic status, Japan is more resilient because of its ability to afford changes in architectural and
engineering designs of building and infrastructures to make them less vulnerable to earthquake. Another example
is the Covid-19 pandemic wherein the most affected are those who belong to low income and informal workers.
Social and economic vulnerability can be combined also known as socioeconomic vulnerability.
Environmental vulnerability is caused by natural resources depletion and destruction. Organisms like humans,
animals, and plants are all dependent on the environment for survival. Human activities like deforestation, burning
of fossil fuels, and kaingin affect the natural abilities of the environment to protect itself from any natural hazard
due to absence of trees which may cause landslide and flashfloods. Sometimes the effects are irreversible.
Quantifying vulnerability is used in estimating how much mitigation and preparedness measures will be applied.
Computation is based on the previous hazard events and severity of their effects.
The Philippines has high vulnerability due to the following reasons:
• It lies in the Pacific typhoon belt and we are visited by an average of 20 typhoons every year.
• Rugged nature of the landscape makes it vulnerable to landslide, mudflows, and other disasters.
• It is an archipelagic country with many small islands where some areas are at below sea level.
• It has the longest shoreline in the world at 32,400 km making it vulnerable to storm surges.
• It is still a primary agricultural and fishing economy.
• With poor institutional and social capacity to manage, respond, and recover from natural hazard events.
• With high level of poverty
• Aside from typhoon, it is also at risk to volcanic eruptions, quakes, and floods.

Hazard is a harmful condition, substance, human behavior or condition that can

cause loss of life, injury or other health effects, harm to property, loss of livelihood and
services, social and economic disruption or damage to the environment. Any risk
which is imminent is threat.
Exposure is the presence of elements at risk or chance of being harmed from a
natural or man-made hazard event. Elements include the individuals, households or
communities, properties, buildings and structures, agricultural commodities,
livelihoods, and public facilities, infrastructures and environmental assets present in
an area that are subject to potential damage or even losses. The more a community is
exposed to hazard factors, the higher is the disaster risk or higher chance disaster
occurrence.
Vulnerability means the characteristics and circumstances of a community, system,
or asset, that make it susceptible to the damaging effects of a hazard and inability of a
community to prevent, mitigate, prepare for and respond to hazardous events.
Risk implies the probability of possible adverse effects. This results from the
interaction of social and environmental systems, from the combination of physical
danger, and exposed item vulnerabilities.
Disaster is a serious disruption to the functioning of a community or society which
causes widespread human, material, economic or environmental losses that exceed
the capacity of the community or society concerned to cope with the use of their own
resources. It results from the mix of hazards, risk conditions and inadequate
capability or measures.
Exposure and vulnerability, on the other hand, are distinct. A certain community
can be exposed but it does not mean that it is vulnerable. Buildings and structures in
Japan are exposed to earthquake, but they are not vulnerable since their architectural
and engineering designs are earthquake proof or resistant. However, to become
vulnerable, it must be exposed to hazard first.
Exposure to hazard can make a community vulnerable. But not all communities that
are exposed to hazard can be considered vulnerable. Vulnerability depends on the
preparedness and readiness to a hazard of the community. It depends mostly on how
they mitigate, respond, and recovery

Disaster mitigation measures are those that eliminate or reduce the impacts and risks
of hazards by means of proactive measures taken before an emergency or disaster
takes place. Mitigation is the action of reducing something's severity, seriousness, or
painfulness.

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Hazards can be categorized in different types:
1. Natural hazards - arise from natural processes in the environment.
e.g. earthquakes, tsunami, landslides, volcanic eruptions and floods
2. Quasi-natural hazards- arise through the interaction of natural processes and

human activities
e.g. pollution or desertification, smog and fog
3. Technological (or man-made) hazards- These arise directly as a result of human
activities.
e.g. accidental release of chemicals, toxic and pesticides to floral and fauna
A hazard is defined is simply a condition or a set of circumstances that present a
potential for harm. So far, you also have learned that hazards are divided into two
broad categories: health hazard (can cause occupational illnesses) and safety
hazard (can cause physical harm or injuries). A hazard can also be classified into
six types which are biological, chemical, physical, safety, ergonomic and
psychosocial.
On the other hand, risk refers to the potential for loss, damage or destruction a
hazard can cause while vulnerability refers to the characteristics of a community
or system that make it susceptible to the possible damaging effects of a hazard.
For example, a doctor who is handling a patient infected with a virus (hazard) has
a high chance of getting infected (risk) if she has poor immune system and does
not wear personal protective equipment (vulnerability).
What are the Different Impacts of Hazards?
A hazard can bring about many impacts which can come in different types.
Facilities and infrastructures are commonly the target of natural hazards.
Specifically, these impacts can trigger accidents and the release of toxic
substances, fires and explosions, potentially resulting in health effects,
environmental pollution and economic losses.
One way to classify hazard impacts is by means of general impact themes namely:
• • Danger to life which includes physical and psychological harm

and diseases
• • Denial of access like energy, water, communication and

transport access
• • Damage to the physical environment like buildings and land

For the purpose of this module, we will focus on six (6) more specific types of
hazard impacts.
1. Physical impact
- Physical injuries (bone fracture, wounds, bruises)
- Destruction and loss of vital infrastructure like transportation system, roads,
bridges, power lines and communication lines.
- Wide spread destruction of housing and buildings

2. Psychological impact
- Grief and psychological illness
- Marital conflict
- Depression due to loss of loved ones and properties
- Chronic anxiety

3. Socio- cultural impact

- Displacement of population
- Loss of cultural identity
- Forced of adoption of new sets of culture
- Ethnic conflicts
4. Economic impact
- Loss of job due to displacement
- Loss of harvest and livestock
- Loss of farms, fish cages and other source of food
- Loss of money and other valuables

5. Environmental impact
- Loss of forest due to forest fires
- Loss of fresh water due to salination
- Disturbance of biodiversity
- Loss of natural rivers

6. Biological impact
- Epidemic to people, flora and fauna
- Chronic and permanent illness caused by biological agents
- Proliferation of different viral diseases

Identification of Hazards and Risk Assessment

Hazard identification is the process of determining all physical and nonphysical
agents in the workplace or specific environment. Most occupational health and
safety problems are caused by hazards which are not eliminated or managed. In
order to prevent untoward incidents in a workplace or community, elimination or
controlling of hazards is crucial. In some workplaces where hazards cannot be
eliminated, they must be monitored and properly managed at the least.
Risk assessment is a way to determine which hazards and risks should prioritized
by taking into consideration the probability and severity of impact.
Below are the steps in hazard identification and risk assessment.
1. Identify the hazards. Use the following methods:
a. Observation - use your senses of sight, hearing, smell and touch - combined
with knowledge and experience.
b. Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs) - obtain them from manufacturers and
suppliers. It gives information on possible harm from hazardous substances and
precautions that need to be taken.
c. Hazard and risk surveys - interview other people about their safety concerns as
far as the workplace is concerned. Utmost consideration should be given to
children or visitors who could be at risk.
d. Discussion groups - are useful for identifying hazards and recommending
solutions.
e. Safety audits – a committee must be assigned to periodically check safety in the
area.
2. Assess the Risk. Once a hazard has been identified, the likelihood and possible
severity of injury or harm will need to be assessed before determining how best to
minimize the risk. High-risk hazards need to be addressed more urgently than
low- risk ones.

3. Make the changes. Once risks are assessed, the next step is to make decision
for some necessary changes. These changes include removing the hazard and
replacing it with something less hazardous, engineering modifications like
installation of exhausts, safety barriers and safety exits, modification of
procedures, etc. Combination of the risk control measures mentioned above to
effectively reduce exposure to hazards can also be done.
4. Checking the changes made. To make sure risk has been minimized, and a
further hazard has not been created, the new safety measures may need to be
carefully tested before work begins again. Risk assessment doesn’t end with
making changes. It is essential that these changes made are monitored and
checked. It must be monitored if the changes done are being followed consistently
and if these changes contribute to the improvement of safety management in the
workplace. This last step has to be done periodically to accurately assess the
effectiveness of the entire process.

Map interpretation is the process looking at the map in order for us to be guided to
a direction or place where we wanted to go using the different symbols or elements
of the map.
There are seven important components of a map. These components will help you
interpret a map.
1. Compass rose. This will give you the proper direction. This is also called it
“orientation.”

2. Title. It tells what the map is about.

3. Symbols. These are pictures instead of symbols.

4. Legend or Key. It explains the meaning of symbols and colour.

5. Colour. It highlights the important information to help interpret maps.

6. Scale. It shows the proportion of map to real life.

7. Grid Reference. These are intersecting lines to help locate specific places on the
map. In some maps, it is also called “border.