Chapter I THE PROBLEM AND ITS SETTING Introduction Natural disaster is a sudden phenomenon that causes great damage and loss. It is defined as a major adverse event that results from meteorological, geological, and hydrological origins. According to the United Nations (UN), this disrupts local response capacity and affects the socioeconomic development of a region resulting from consequences of events triggered by natural hazards (Ferris, 2010). This include floods, tornadoes, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, storms, tsunamis, and other geologic processes. There are three types of natural disasters: geological, hydrological, and meteorologic disasters. These disasters are primarily influenced by natural activities taking place in the earth’s crust, as well as its surface. A natural disaster can cause loss of life and major damage in its wake with varying severity based on the affected population’s resiliency and infrastructures available. A population that has higher vulnerability could suffer in a socioeconomic crisis, making the process of recovery more difficult. Thus, this event could make a great impact resulting to an immediate rise in poverty and deprivation (Carter, et al., 2008). Natural disasters pose serious threat to people, thus disaster education, which includes education on disaster risks, mitigation, and preparedness strategies, is one approach to minimize the negative effects of disasters (Mulyasari et al., 2011). Based on the Global Humanitarian Overview 2019 Report of the United Nations, 870 million people from 160 countries, either lost their lives, their livelihoods or were displaced from their home because of natural disasters in the period of 2014 and 2017. Over 90% of global disasters are caused by floods, severe storms, droughts, and other climate-related extremes and have caused great damage to people (Wood, 2018). Furthermore, Wood reported that Asia-Pacific nations are more prone to natural disasters than any other regions. Between 2014 and 2017, 55 earthquakes, 217 cyclones and storms, and 236 cases of severe flooding that devastated this region accounts to 650 million affected people and 33,000 casualties. The vulnerability of a place to disaster does not solely depends on the location, but also how the people lives. Large, growing populations with high proportion of people living in poverty is one of the common characteristics of many Asia-Pacific nations. On the other hand, Asia-Pacific nations experiences frequent typhoons because of its geological location near the western Pacific Ocean. The warm sea surface water of the Pacific Ocean drives tropical cyclones and allows the typhoon season to last an entire year (Mersereau, 2016). In addition, nations in the Asia- Pacific region are likely to be in the Pacific Ring of Fire. It is a path along the Pacific Ocean characterized by active volcanoes and frequent earthquakes. The Pacific Ring of Fire consists 75% of Earth’s volcanoes – more than 450 volcanoes. Ninety percent of Erath’s earthquakes and most violent seismic events occur along its path (National Geographic Organization). As an archipelago of over 7,641 islands at the junction of several tectonic plate boundaries and the Pacific Ocean, the Philippines is especially susceptible to natural disasters. The very geographical location of the country makes it vulnerable to disasters caused by natural hazards (Ramos & Jones, 2020). According to 2013 Time Magazine article, the Philippines is the most storm exposed country on Earth. An average of eight to nine tropical storms make landfall in the Philippines each year, with another 10 entering its waters. The country also ranks in the top three countries in the world for population exposure and vulnerability to hazards. The country’s government has developed strong recovery mechanisms over the long history of experience of disaster. However, the lack of disaster management capacities across different regions of the country and yet little data are available to assess the disaster preparedness and awareness in local levels (Bolettino, 2018). On the 12th of January 2020, the eruption of the Taal Volcano, located in the province of Batangas, disrupts the whole Region 4A (CALABARZON). The eruption was characterized by steady steam emission and infrequent weak explosions that generated ash plumes 500 to 1000 meters tall and dispersed ash to the whole region (IOM, 2020). The spewed ashes of the eruption resulted to suspension of school classes, work, and flights in the area. Last November 2020, the Philippines was devastated by the strongest tropical cyclone of 2020, Typhoon Ulysses (Vamco). On the 11th of November, Typhoon Ulysses struck the Luzon island with destructive winds and heavy rainfall that resulted to massive flooding in several areas especially Region II (Cagayan) (OCHA, 2020). The Office of Civil Defense – region 2 reported that more than 151,600 families – composed of 583, 493 individuals are affected by the typhoon displacing more than 2,200 families in evacuation centers and at least 24 casualties (Inquirer, 2020). Moreover, CNN Philippines reported the declaration of state of calamity in the province of Oriental Mindoro imposed by its local officials due to massive destruction left by Typhoon Quinta (Molave) on October 2020 which reached 1 billion pesos worth of damage to the agriculture of the province alone. Furthermore, Puerto Galera, one of the municipalities in Oriental Mindoro had also suffered from the destructive effects of the typhoon that caused flooding and death of a mangyan – indigenous people in Puerto Galera. In addition, the municipality also suffered to a public market fire that accounted to 60 million pesos worth of damage. These scenarios proved that the awareness of locals on real time disaster mitigation is far from ideal. This led the researchers to conduct a quantitative study to analyze the awareness and preparedness of youth in Sitio Aguada, Poblacion. The study aims to recognize the awareness of youth to come up with possible interventions and generate information dissemination to promote disaster preparedness and mitigation. Statement of the Problem Generally, the study aims to analyze the disaster preparedness of youth in Sitio Aguada, Poblacion which may serve as a basis for information dissemination. Specifically, the researchers seek to answer the following questions: 1. What is the level of awareness of youth from Sitio Aguada in events of typhoon in terms of : 1.1 Evacuation sites 1.2 Safety measures before, during, and after disaster 1.3 Emergency Hotlines 2. What is the level of preparedness of youth from Sitio Aguada in events of earthquake in terms of : 2.1 Evacuation sites 2.2 Safety measures before, during, and after disaster 2.3 Emergency Hotlines 3. What are the possible interventions that can be done to prepare the youth towards disasters? Conceptual Framework Preparedness of youth in events of typhoon: Evacuation sites Safety measures Emergency Hotlines Output Process Input Questionnaire Descriptive Survey Statistical Treatment Possible interventions that can be implemented to prepare youth regarding disasters Preparedness of youth in events of earthquake: Evacuation sites Safety measures Emergency Hotlines Application to real life situations Significance of the Study Readiness and awareness before, during, and after a disaster are of great help in lessening the casualties to people, specifically the residents of Aguada, Poblacion. The study entitled, “Disaster Preparedness of Youth in Sitio Aguada, Poblacion: Basis for Information Dissemination will benefit the community, youth, and future researchers. Community. This study will help Aguada, Poblacion in increasing their awareness towards disasters and for disseminating information to its residents. Youth. This study will benefit the youth locals in Aguada, Poblacion for they will be prepared and educated towards the risks that disaster pose t the community. Future Researchers. This study may serve as reference to fellow researchers that has the same scope and context. Scope and Limitations The study generally focuses on the assessment of the youth’s awareness towards disaster preparedness, who serves as the respondents of the study. This study involves a survey amongst the respondents to determine their level of awareness with regards to disasters. The data gathered will serve as the key foundation for possible interventions that can be applied to resolve the problem. This study is only limited to youth locals from Sitio Aguada, Poblacion as its respondents. The study is also limited in determining the awareness of the respondents to natural disasters (geophysical, hydrological, and meteorological) because covering all types of disaster is broad. Definition of Terms The following terms used in the study are defined operationally for the readers to easily understand the study: Disaster. It is the sudden event such as an accident or a natural catastrophe, that causes great damage or loss of life. Information. Dissemination. It is defined as the act of distributing or broadcasting information to raise awareness of youth from Sitio Aguada towards natural disasters. Preparedness. This refers to the ability of governments, professional response organizations, communities, and individuals to anticipate and respond effectively to the impact of likely, imminent, or current hazards, events, or conditions. Youth. Individuals aging between 15 to 24 who served as the respondents of the study.
