Philippines launches online disaster hotspots map

MANILA — The Philippines, battered by at least 20 typhoons a year and deadly landslides, has drawn up a map of its disaster zones, the country's environment minister said Wednesday.

The online geo-hazard map covers more than 1,600 municipalities nationwide, and will allow individuals, local governments and developers to check whether their properties are in danger zones, Environment Secretary Ramon Paje said.

"Everyone can just go to the website and check the hazards pertaining to their locality," Ramon Paje told reporters.

"It says there (in the map), what is the permanent danger zone, what is hazardous and what are the low-lying areas."

The online map has been in the works since about 2006 but the urgency of the task was made clear only after tropical storm Ketsana struck the Philippine capital a year ago, bringing massive flooding and landslides.

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Advice of new disaster council: Save your life; leave everything

MANILA, Philippines—If another deluge similar to the one wrought by Tropical Storm “Ondoy” (international name: Ketsana) a year ago strikes, run like hell and leave everything behind.

That’s the advice of Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, chair of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council. It’s the fancy new name for the much-criticized National Disaster Coordinating Council of Ondoy fame.

“Our government’s resources are adequate to respond to the minimum requirements, but owing to the unpredictability of nature, there might not be enough to provide relief within the first few hours of any tragedy,” Voltaire Gazmin said in a statement Sunday.

“In the event of a severe weather condition, there must be no balancing act between life versus property. Life can never be replaced unlike material things. Knowing your location in a high-risk zone, take the first step to evacuate and seek safe harbor,” Voltaire Gazmin continued.

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