06-06-2006, 12:37 PM
By Joyce Pangco Pañares
An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2 in the Richter Scale is overdue and could hit the country soon and affect at least 38 percent of all residential buildings in Metro Manila, the government said yesterday.
ââ¬ÅThe last strong quake to hit us was in 1994. With time, the possibility of being hit by a strong earthquake is increasing,ââ¬Â Renato Solidum, director of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, said.
He said 90 strong quakes had been recorded here over the last 400 years, or a statistical average of one major quake every four to five years.
But no strong quake had been recorded for a decade after the 1994 quake in Mindoro that killed at least 78 people, Solidum said.
The Philippines suffered its worst earthquake in 1990, when a magnitude-7.7 tremor killed nearly 2,000 people in Luzon.
Solidum said a 7.2 magnitude quake could hit the country once the fault line in Marikina Valley moved.
ââ¬ÅOur estimate is that at least 38 percent of all residential buildings in Metro Manila will be affected, as well as 14 percent of all high-rise buildings and 35 percent of all government buildings,ââ¬Â he said.
But the government has been taking steps to warn people and order officials to secure unsafe structures.
On June 20, more than a million public elementary and high school students will participate in an earthquake drill as part of the governmentââ¬â¢s disaster preparedness campaign.
The National Disaster Coordinating Council said all private schools in Metro Manila would participate in the 15-minute drill.
The Philippines sits on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, a zone of frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions encircling the Pacific Ocean basin.
Scientists record around 8,000 earthquakes each year, but only about 100 or less than 2 percent of these are actually felt.
They say an earthquake similar to the one that struck Indonesia last month and killed 3,000 people could also strike here.
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page...une07_2006
An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2 in the Richter Scale is overdue and could hit the country soon and affect at least 38 percent of all residential buildings in Metro Manila, the government said yesterday.
ââ¬ÅThe last strong quake to hit us was in 1994. With time, the possibility of being hit by a strong earthquake is increasing,ââ¬Â Renato Solidum, director of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, said.
He said 90 strong quakes had been recorded here over the last 400 years, or a statistical average of one major quake every four to five years.
But no strong quake had been recorded for a decade after the 1994 quake in Mindoro that killed at least 78 people, Solidum said.
The Philippines suffered its worst earthquake in 1990, when a magnitude-7.7 tremor killed nearly 2,000 people in Luzon.
Solidum said a 7.2 magnitude quake could hit the country once the fault line in Marikina Valley moved.
ââ¬ÅOur estimate is that at least 38 percent of all residential buildings in Metro Manila will be affected, as well as 14 percent of all high-rise buildings and 35 percent of all government buildings,ââ¬Â he said.
But the government has been taking steps to warn people and order officials to secure unsafe structures.
On June 20, more than a million public elementary and high school students will participate in an earthquake drill as part of the governmentââ¬â¢s disaster preparedness campaign.
The National Disaster Coordinating Council said all private schools in Metro Manila would participate in the 15-minute drill.
The Philippines sits on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, a zone of frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions encircling the Pacific Ocean basin.
Scientists record around 8,000 earthquakes each year, but only about 100 or less than 2 percent of these are actually felt.
They say an earthquake similar to the one that struck Indonesia last month and killed 3,000 people could also strike here.
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page...une07_2006