Disaster Risk is defined as the “potential loss of
life, injury, or destroyed or damaged assets which
LESSON 1
1. Disaster - a sudden, calamitous event
2. Ring of Fire - a path along the Pacific
Ocean characterized by active volcanoes
and frequent earthquakes
3. Calamity - an event causing great and
often sudden damage or distress
4. Earthquake - Shaking of earth caused by
waves.
5. Volcanic Eruption - when lava and gas are
discharged from a volcanic vent.
What is a disaster and how does it differ from a
hazard?
Concept of Disaster
- a natural phenomenon or human activity
driven event that creates injury and death
among people, damage to infrastructure,
disruption to socio-economic, cultural, and
political processes, and degradation of the
environment (UNDRR, 2007)
- Any event that causes widespread human,
economic, and environmental losses or
impacts that can seriously disrupt the
normal functioning of a community.
When does a natural event become a hazard?
- Natural events become a hazard when they
have the potential to harm lives (in large
quantities).
When does a hazard become a disaster?
- A disaster happens when the probable
destructive agent, the hazard, hits a
vulnerable populated area.
- A natural event which hits an uninhabited
area does not qualify as a disaster. It
becomes a disaster only if it hits
vulnerable populations and properties, in
short, there are victims.
- Vulnerability - physical, social, economic,
and environmental factors that increase the
susceptibility to the impact of a hazard. It
can be defined as the diminished capacity
of an individual or group to anticipate, cope
with, resist, and recover from the impact of
a natural or man-made hazard.
could occur to a system, society, or a community in
a specific period of time (NDRR)
- Defined through the combination of three
terms: hazard, exposure, and
vulnerability.
- Does not only express the chance of the
disaster happening but also to quantify the
impact.
- The magnitude of the disaster depends on:
severity of the natural event, quantity of
exposure of the elements at risk,
vulnerability level or quality of exposure.
KINDS OF RISKS:
1. Acceptable Risk - determines ways to
reduce possible harm to people. Can be
tolerated as it does not cause adverse
damages
2. Residual Risk - Remains after efforts of
disaster risk reduction. Indicator of
continuing needs for development of
community capacity.
3. National Disaster Risk - Intensive and
extensive risk that can create a potential
nationwide impact in either one event or
cumulative. Requires the intervention of
NDRRMC in mitigation efforts.
- Extensive Disaster Risk - linked to
low severity, high-frequency events
that occur in localized areas. Highly
related to localized hazards.
Seasonal, floodings, landslides.
- How many vulnerable populations
are possibly affected? 1 - 10 is the
scaling.
- Intensive Disaster Risk - linked to
low severity, mid to high frequency
that occur in localized areas. Highly
related to localized hazards.
Eruptions, COVID-19 pandemic. May
occur monthly or yearly such as
typhoons, earthquakes. The injured
population may scale to 100
EFFECTS OF DISASTER:
- Severity of the effects is worse to the
population that is directly affected.
 - Although the effect may become lower in
nearby communities, the effects may still be
felt and significant
1. Primary Effect - direct situations arising
from the disaster itself
2. Secondary Effect - resulting from primary
3. Tertiary - felt some time after primary and
after secondary effects
Example:
As an employee, you were layed off as the
company was forced to fire workers due to their
building being broken.
Perspectives in Analyzing Disaster Effects
1. Physical Perspective - tangible materials
2. Psychological Perspective - mental health
3. Sociocultural Perspective - response of the
people based on their values, cultures,
religion. Bayanihan.
4. Economic Perspective - businesses,
incomes
5. Political Perspective - response of
government officials
6. Biological Perspective - illnesses
NATURE AND EFFECTS OF DISASTER
- Being aware of the nature of hazards what
these can do is the first step in every effort
to minimize the effects of disasters.
- Disaster often result from the failure to
anticipate the timing of a disaster
IMPACTS:
1. Medical Effects - traumatic injuries,
emotional stress, epidemic stress
2. Damage to Critical Facilities - destroys
facilities that may help in preserving safe
environments
3. Disruption of Transportation - broken
bridges and restricted mobility of vehicles
4. Economic Impact
5. Global Environmental Change - global
climatic change brought about by both
human activity and disasters. The changes
could result in more hazards such as
wildfires, mudslides, reduced productivity in
oceans, and weakened immune systems of
people and animals. This can lead to the
extinction of species.
6. Social and Political Impact - it heavily
impacts the poor as they are most prone to
disasters due to the structures they live in
that are poorly built.
LESSON 2
WHAT MAKES THE PHILIPPINES VULNERABLE TO
DISASTER? - It is along the Pacific Ring of Fire with
many vulnerable populations along with its many
possible causes such as the ITCZ (Intertropical
Convergence Zone).
Vulnerability - refers to the severity of loss or
damage due to the occurrence of a hazard.
- The physical social, economic, and
environmental factors which increase the
susceptibility to be impacted by hazards.
Marginalized and Minority Sector (most susceptible
to disasters):
- Women, Children, Older people, PWDs,
Select Migrant, Ethnic minorities, sexual
minorities, medication-dependent
individuals, informal settlers, those in
poverty, homeless individuals, incarcerated
individuals.
Exposure - total value of elements at risk.
Expressed as the number of human lives and value
of the properties that can potentially be affected
by hazards.
Can be measured in:
1. Physical Elements - tangible factors such as
poeple, assets, buildings: R.A. 9154, The Fire
Code of the Philippines 2008.
2. Socio-economic Elements - social
vulnerabilities of communities and how
these contribute to their overall exposure.
- Certain communities can easily
recover after disaster while others
cannot due to negligence or
mismanagement of the economy.
3. Environmental Elements - Natural Processes
and ecosystems that are exposed to
adjacent hazard event
4. Elements at Risk - risk assessment involves
the identification and mapping of the
elements at risk and the assessment of
vulnerability.
Hazard - Natural Phenomenon/Human Activities
Exposure - Elements at Risk
Vulnerability - ability to recover
PhExp - Hazard x Exposure
With:
PhExp being the physical experience
Hazard being the probability of occurrence
Exposure - population living in the affected area.
For example:
Tropical Cyclone x Population = Physical Exposure
VULNERABILITY (by Vegel & O’Brien)
1. Multidimensional & differential - how big is
the environment
2. Scale-dependent - concerns time, space,
unit of analysis as these are scaled
3. Dynamic - hazards may change.
MULTI-HAZARD APPROACH by Gill and Malamud
(2016)
Pre-disaster vulnerability > Hazard 1 > Post-disaster
vulnerability > Hazard 2 > Post-disaster
vulnerability > Hazard 3 > Post-disaster vulnerability
> Hazard 4
CYCLE by Gil and Malamud (2014)
1. Multi-layer single hazard approach
2. Hazard identification and comparison
3. Hazard Interaction
4. Hazard Coincidence
5. Dynamin Vulnerability
6. Comprehensive Multi-Hazard Risk Approach
UNDRR (2017) accurately measures impact which
provides a good estimation of damage and losses.
Once data is gathered, the info will be quantified
then disseminated.
IMPACT ON HEALTH AND SAFETY:
- Fatalities
- Severely injured/ill people
- Permanently displaced people
- People lacking basic needs
ECONOMIC IMPACT:
- Disrupted transportation of goods
- Interrupted basic services
- Disrupted livelihood
- Permanently displaced people
- People lacking basic needs
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT:
- Disruption of natural processes/ecosystems
- Environmental Pollution
- Loss of ecological value
SOCIAL AND POLITICAL IMPACT:
- Political
outrage/anxiety/social-psychological
impact
- Disruption of daily life functions
- Disruption of educational system
- Encroachment of territory
- Infringement of internal position
- Violation of democratic system
- Impact on public order and safety
- Loss of social cohesion
IMPACT ON CULTURAL HERITAGE:
- Loss of cultural heritages and values
LESSON 3
Community plays a huge role in reducing disaster
risk.
DISASTER CLASSES
1.) NATURAL HAZARD FACTORS
1. Geophysics/Geological - earthquakes, plot
movement, volcanic activity
2. Hydrological - flood, landslide, storm surge
3. Meteorology - convective storm, outside
the tropical storm, extreme temperature,
fog
4. Climate - tropical wind, drought, wildfire,
ice lake flood
5. Alien Planet Class - plant collision, space
weather
2.) ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARD FACTORS
1. Environmental Degradation - soil erosion,
deforestation, salinization, desertification,
asian dust cloud, wetland
reduction/degradation, glacier
subsided/melted
2. Biology - infectious disease,
epidemic/pandemic, animal-related
epidemic/pandemic, injurious insect, pests,
animal event
3.) MAN-MADE HAZARDS - machine operated
1. Technical - industrial disaster, structure
cllapse, power failure, fire, epxlosion, mine
disaster, warfare, terrorist attack
2. Chemical Radiation - chemicla leakage, oil
spill, radiation pollution
3. Major traffic accidents - aviation, railway,
road, sailing, space
SINGLE-HAZARD RISK ANALYSIS - community
based approach
1. Hazard - frequency, severity
2. Exposure
3. Vulnerability
 4. Capacity
TABLE USED TO DETERMINE SINGLE-HAZARD
RISK ANALYSIS
- This information is gathered by news
agencies, LGUs, census, et cetera.
DISASTER (Prospective Community Hazards):
Covid-19 Pandemic (2020)
Areas Affected (Scale)
- 100% of the community
Damages/Losses
- 268 people tested positive
- 46 deaths
Factor-based analysis - hazard characterization
tool that serves as a relevant basis in disaster risk
reduction.
1. Frequency - how often does the community
encounter the hazard (yearly, every season)
2. Duration - how long does it usually take?
3. Speed of Onset - how quickly does it occur
after initial detection?
- Slowly - when there is a warning
- Rapidly - without notice nor
prediction
4. Intensity - level of strength or magnitude
5. Probability - how likely will it occur over a
period?
6. Forewarning - what are signals that
indicate its occurrence? How much time is
there for preparation?
7. Manageability - how manageable are the
effects?
The application of factor-based analysis may vary
by sub-classifying
1. GENERAL - wide area, data is common
2. SPECIFIC
Et
LESSON 4
Earthquake - referred to as the force called shock.
- Shaking of the ground caused by the
sudden breaking and movements of large
tectonic plates of the earth’s rocky
outermost crust.
- Earthquakes in the Philippines happen more
frequently because of its geographical
location by the “Pacific Ring of Fire.”
The shifting masses send out shock waves that may
be powerful enough to:
1. Alter the surface of the Earth
2. Cause great damage.
Fault or Fault plane - surface where two blocks of
Earth suddenly slip past one another
Hypocenter - location below the Earth's surface
where the earthquake starts. Reaches 100km in
depth.
Epicenter - location on the surface of the Earth
directly above the hypocenter
FOOT WALL -
Hanging wall -
DIFFERENT TYPES OF FAULT:
1. Strike-slip Fault (Shear Stress)
2. Reverse fault (Slip slope) - the footwall is
below the hanging wall.
3. Thrust Fault (Gentle slope) similar to the
reverse fault but has a gentler slope.
4. Normal Fault

POTENTIAL HAZARDS OF EARTHQUAKES:1
1. GROUND SHAKING
How is Ground shaking measured?
1. Velocity - km/s
2. Acceleration - Amplitude recorded by the
accelelogram. Speed and direction.
3. Frequency content of the shaking - How
many waves were encountered in one
second?
4. Duration - How long did an earthquake
exist or last?
WAVES CLASSIFICATION (Hays, 1981):
BODY WAVES (can only travel within the
earth)
1. P-waves (primary) or compressional
waves - first waves to cause high-frequency
vibration in its structures. Moves back and
forth. Can only travel within the interior of
the Earth.
- Can move through liquid and solids.
2. S-waves (Secondary) or shear waves -
second waves to cause high-frequency
vibrations in structures.
3. Surface waves (At the earth’s surface)
4. (Rayleigh and Love waves) - LOVE WAVE:
Arrives last and causes only low-frequency
vibrations. Snake-like or side to side
movement.
- RAYLEIGH: wave-like motion
*First earthquake is always the main shock,
following ones are aftershocks.
2. GROUND RUPTURE - When ground movement
happens on a fault line and breaks through to the
surface. When an earthquake is strong enough,
faulting initiated at depths could break the earth’s
surface to form a ground rupture.
3. ACTIVE FAULTING - Currently moving or have
caused earthquakes during historical times or in
the recent geological past. Can cause earthquakes
in the near future.
4. LIQUEFACTION - happens there is a mixing of
soil particles (saturated, mixed with water).
3 factors: . loos granular sediment
Water saturated sediment
Ground shaking
5. Earthquake induced subsidence - process of
liquefaction may cause loose deposit of soil to be
compacted from ground shaking, thereby causing
the ground to subside
6. Earthquake induced landslides - may happen
during or after an earthquake when a weakened
section falls off or breaks apart
Why landslides occur:
1. Removal of support
2. Groundwater (pore water) pressure
trigger s overtime:
1. Natural triggers (plant/animal movements)
2. Rainfall
3. Weathering of rocks
4. Man-made activity
Triggers may create conditions:
1. Steeper slope
2. Weakening of slope material
3. Weathering of rocks
4. Overloading on the slope
Source - landslides, where it comes from
Path - daanan
Deposition paths - collection of sediments
7. Tsunami - series of enormous waves created by
an underwater disturbance such as an earthquake,
landslide, volcanic eruption or meteorite.
- A wave or series of waves in a wave train
generated by the sudan, vertical
displacement of a column of water.
- This may be due to seismic activity, vertical
displacement of a column of water, asteroid
impact, or certain meteorological
phenomena.
- Japanese origin with “tsu” meaning harbor,
and “nami” meaning wave. It may also be
known as harbor wave as it is seen near the
harbor.
STAGES OF A TSUNAMI:
1. Initiation - Tsunamis of seismic origin start from
a slip of a fault underneath the ocean. This
movement is described as displacement.
2. Split - the tsunami is then “split” into two waves,
with the distant tsunami heading toward the deep
ocean, and the local tsunami heading toward the
near shoreline.
3. Amplification - as the tsunamis travel in their
respective directions, the waves increase in their
high while their wavelengths decrease.

4. Runup - approach of the tsunami’s leading wave

to the shore. Runups can happen multiple times
with accumulating force.

NEUTRAL SIGNALS OF AN IMPENDING TSUNAMI:

1. Ground shaking near the shoreline.
2. Unusual sea level or receding shoreline.
3. Rumbling sound of the waves.