Experts say the unusually huge rainfall brought by the recent typhoons is just the start of a pattern of more destructive, intense, and frequent weather disturbances. We already know that our earth’s warmer atmosphere causes more water to evaporate from the oceans, soaking the atmosphere with denser rain and increasing the power of storms.

But aside from its strength, Typhoon “Pepeng” exhibited another abnormality: Making landfall in the country three times. It also dumped rainwater thrice the amount that is enough to trigger landslides. The downhill movement of water from higher areas like Benguet caused flooding in places of lower elevation. This explains why the flooding continued even if the rains had already stopped.

Climate change has also blurred the lines between wet and dry season. The APEC Climate Center’s (APCC) forecast for October-December, 2009, indicates anomalously warm conditions in the world’s tropical regions. The Philippines is supposed to experience the El Niño phenomenon this year, but tropical storms Ondoy and Pepeng brought us an abnormally wet El Niño.

With all these bizarre weather events, one can say that weird weather is now the norm.

What we ought to learn from this experience is that we need to put in place a more efficient disaster prediction and response system. We can prevent severe loss of life and property if we are better prepared. This could spell the difference between a simple weather disturbance and a catastrophic environmental, and human disaster.

Together with PAGASA, I sought the assistance of Hyogo Prefecture in Japan to create a Disaster Management Training Center to develop plans and programs aimed at reducing social, environmental, and institutional vulnerability in the face of natural disasters.

Because of its experience in dealing with the Great Hanshin Awaji Earthquake, Hyogo Prefecture is in the best position to offer assistance to this training center in the form of professional expertise, technology, and equipment.

We are establishing the Disaster Management Training Center in Aurora province because of its proneness to natural disasters, but the knowledge and expertise that will emerge from the training center will benefit the rest of the country.

We can better protect lives and properties from future disasters by enhancing and developing human, technical, and institutional capacity through training and staff development on disaster risk reduction. This is our only defense against the onslaught of extreme weather.

Email: edgardo_angara@hotmail.com
Website: www.edangara.com