Editorial

High economic toll from disasters

Greek myth tells of Sisyphus, a shrewd and greedy king in Corinth, who was punished in Hades for his misdeeds by eternally having to roll a heavy stone up a hill; every time he approached the top, the stone escaped his grasp and rolled to the bottom.

When we speak of Sisyphean labor, therefore, we speak of a very difficult undertaking in which we end up precisely from where we started out.

That may well describe Philippine efforts at economic and social development, and part of the reason could be that our geographical location and topography predispose this country to slide back several rungs on the ladder of development every time Nature unleashes its fury.   

Initial estimates by the National Disaster Coordinating Council put the toll from the latest supertyphoon to hit the country, “Reming,” at 208 dead, 82 injured, 261 missing, and at least P19.71 million in damage to property, mostly in Southern Tagalog and Bicol. At least 24,545 houses were destroyed while 80,532 were damaged. The typhoon also displaced 93,582 families or 455,983 people in the two regions, with some 5,612 families or 29,790 people in 190 designated evacuation centers.

NDCC also says that of the initial estimate of P19.71 million in damage to property, infrastructure losses amounted to P15.2 million and damage to agriculture amounted to P4.51 million. (The DA said Sunday it’s P376 million). The Department of Public Works and Highways, however, places the damage to infrastructure at P1 billion.

The grim statistics again highlight the fact that the Philippines is among the countries with the most number of natural disasters in the past century. At least 20 typhoons hit the country every year, causing floods and mudslides that cause death and destruction in communities. The Philippines is also located within the tectonic belt, which makes it vulnerable to destructive earthquakes. And we have over 200 volcanoes, most of them active, that form part of the Pacific “rim of fire,” making the country prone to volcanic eruptions that wreak great havoc on lives and property. 

NDCC figures indicate that nationwide in 2001-05, a total of 2,892 people were killed and 909 others went missing in typhoons and other storms, which caused damages totaling P26.05 billion or $521 million.

The agency adds that during the past century, bad weather cost the country about P15 billion or $300 million a year just in infrastructure. This estimate does not include losses in employment and other economic opportunities.

While the Philippines is already inherently vulnerable to a host of natural disasters, the problem is compounded by rising poverty. Many people are too poor to leave dangerous areas, such as mountainsides and riverbanks. In a country where more than half of the population is considered poor and live a hand-to-mouth existence, the human cost of natural disasters is enormous indeed. The International Red Cross observes in its 2005 Disaster Report that natural disasters “aggravate preexisting poverty, creating a downward spiral of vulnerability, arresting development.”

Weather experts are also saying that climate change is also contributing to the severity of the typhoons now hitting the Philippines. The mix of strong typhoons, excessive rain and landslides, they say, will continue to cause death and destruction in the country. Unless the government acts quickly, climate change could further heighten the severity of extreme weather events in this country.

Sen. Richard Gordon, who heads the Philippine National Red Cross, is correct in pointing out that better planning is needed. “We have to break the cycle of disaster and poverty by being smarter, by being sure we can plan our community smarter,” he says. “The big problem here in our country is we don’t plan our communities. It’s every man for himself.”

The fact is that not very much is being done to prepare for natural disasters and so we are doomed to a lifetime of Sisyphean labors. In the aftermath of every natural disaster that brings death and destruction, there is the obligatory finger-pointing and calls for better disaster response. Then, when the furor dies down, so does the enthusiasm to make a sound and rational plan for disaster response and mitigation.

It was in the ’70s, if we’re not mistaken, that a proposal was put forward in Congress to outlaw typhoons. Whether the proposal was made tongue-in-cheek or in all seriousness, we do not know. But we do know that we cannot stop typhoons from blowing in from the Pacific Ocean any more than King Canute could bid the waves to keep still, and so we must do everything we can to mitigate their destructive effects. 

Our frenzied efforts to spur socioeconomic growth should not be suddenly put to an abrupt halt by major natural calamities that visit this country regularly. We should put an end to our Sisyphean labors simply by planning ahead, instead of merely reacting to natural disasters.