Science guides search and rescue after the 2006 Philippine landslide.
A rockslide-debris avalanche destroyed the remote village of Guinsaugon in Southern Leyte, Philippines, on 17 February 2006. Although search and rescue procedures were implemented immediately, the scale of the landslide and a lack of information about its nature resulted in unfocused and imprecise efforts in the early days of the operation. Technical support was only introduced five days after the event, provided by a team of volunteer geologists, geophysicists, and meteorologists. By the time search and rescue operations were transferred to specific target sites, however, the chances of finding survivors trapped under the rubble had diminished. In such critical situations, speed, accuracy, and the maximum appropriation of resources are crucial. We emphasise here the need for a systematic and technically informed approach to search and rescue missions in large-scale landslide disaster contexts, and the formulation of better disaster management policies in general. Standard procedures must be developed and enforced to improve how civil authorities respond to natural calamities.
Lagmay
Alfredo Mahar A
AM
National Institute of Geological Sciences, C.P. Garcia, University of the Philippines, Diliman Quezon City 1101, Philippines. mlagmay@nigs.upd.edu.ph
Tengonciang
Arlene Mae P
AM
Rodolfo
Raymond S
RS
Soria
Janneli Lea A
JL
Baliatan
Eden G
EG
Paguican
Engielle R
ER
Ong
John Burtkenley T
JB
Lapus
Mark R
MR
Fernandez
Dan Ferdinand D
DF
Quimba
Zareth P
ZP
Uichanco
Christopher L
CL
D040362:Geographic Information Systems; D005844:Geology; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D055876:Landslides; D055904:Meteorology; D010679:Philippines; D018635:Rescue Work / Q000458:organization & administration*