Makati City to acquire seismographs following magnitude-7.6 Visayas quake

Following last week's magnitude-7.6 quake in Eastern Visayas, Makati City is planning to acquire three sets of 24-bit digital tri-axial seismographs for immediate installation at City Hall. City Mayor Jejomar Erwin Binay Jr. said City Ordinance No. 2012-070 sets aside P3.3-million for the equipment, which will help the city's disaster preparedness. “The magnitude-7.6 earthquake in Eastern Samar underscores the urgent need for highly urbanized cities like Makati to prepare for the possible devastation that an earthquake of similar scale can cause in Metro Manila,” Binay said in a news release on the Makati government's site. At least one person was killed in the Visayas quake. But Binay also noted the high rate of compliance of building owners, particularly in the Central Business District, to the City Hall directive requiring the submission of a certification on structural soundness and stability signed and sealed by a private Structural Engineer. “We appreciate the support and cooperation of building owners in the city to our advocacy for disaster resiliency.  Apparently, they also realize the urgency of bracing ourselves for the so-called ‘big one’ or a magnitude-7.6 temblor predicted by scientists to take place in Metro Manila sometime soon,” Binay said. The city government cited recent studies showing a major earthquake in Metro Manila is possible as the West Valley Fault is “ripe” for movement. The fault runs from the Sierra Madre mountain range in Bulacan, crosses parts of Metro Manila and Laguna and extends to Tagaytay. Structural certificate The city government cited records from its Department of Engineering and Public Works (DEPW) showing over 30 buildings have submitted Structural Certificates duly signed by an accredited Structural Engineer under the Association of Structural Engineers of the Philippines (ASEP). It said these include the Prudential Life Building, which submitted a Structural Certificate attesting to its stability for 15 years, or until 2023. Earlier, DEPW chief and city building official Engr. Nelson Morales issued directives to building owners to submit a Structural Certificate attesting to the structural soundness and stability of their buildings. He also required them to install seismographs in high-rise buildings, both existing and under construction. Morales cited the Zuellig Building along Makati Avenue, the country’s first "green building" certified by the United States Green Building Council, as among the first to install seismographs. He also said the DEPW earlier came up with guidelines on the approved specifications of seismographs or accelerometers, which were patterned after the State of California System Requirements for seismographs. The guidelines were also forwarded to the Department of Public Works and Highways Secretary Rogelio Singson. Makati has been cited as a “Role Model City” by the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) for its “Making Cities Resilient” campaign, and hailed by World Bank as one of “East Asia’s Climate Resilient Cities." Recently, Makati was also named a “disaster risk reduction champion” by the World Bank-funded Global Facility for Disaster Risk Reduction (GFDRR) for its active participation in the city-to-city sharing initiative. — BM, GMA News