disaster readiness and risk reduction

• The Philippines

  • Prone to geological threats
  • Prone to hydrometeorological hazards
• Hydrometeorological


  Natural events that take place in the oceans and in the atmosphere
• The interaction of natural phenomena with defined topography and geography forms hazards in the Philippines
• The transfer of energy between the land surface and the lower atmosphere causes impacts that may be challenging to communities living within the vicinity of the occurrence
• Hydrometeorological hazards in the Philippines

  • Typhoons
  • Thunderstorms
  • Flash floods
  • Floods
  • Storm surges
  • El Niño
  • La Niña
• Tropical cyclones


  • Significantly influenced by the global wind systems
  • Formed in the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ)
• Typhoon


  Technical term used in tropical waters where the intense circulating winds originate from as they head toward the land
• Tropical cyclone classifications

  • Tropical Depression (TD)
  • Tropical Storm (TS)
  • Severe Tropical Storm (STS)
  • Typhoon (TY)
  • Super Typhoon (STY)
• PAGASA records an average of 8 to 9 typhoons every year, which is 70% of the tropical cyclones progressing to typhoons that cross the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) annually
• The peak of typhoon season is from July to October
• Tropical cyclones are formed when the sea surface temperature is more than 27.5 °C
• Typhoons can weaken as they make landfall as they lose contact with the ocean which is their source of heat
• Thunderstorm


  Heavy rain with thunder and lightning
• Thunderstorms begin with an unstable temperature in the atmosphere and on the ground, with the heat coming from the land going up while the cold air from the atmosphere goes down
• Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ)


  the area near the equator where trade winds meet
• Trade Winds


  consist of opposing winds, as if exchanging directions, which account for the swirling motion
• Low Pressure Area (LPA)


  where the convergence happens that is why meteorologists often monitor LPAs
• the direction of the swirling motion is counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere
• typhoon


  is the technical term used in tropical waters where the intense circulating winds originate from as they head toward the land
• typhoon is a type of tropical cyclone that is accompanied by winds with more than 118 kilometers per hour.
• tropical depression


  is a tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds of up to 61 kph or less than 33 nautical miles per hour
• tropical storm


  a tropical cyclone with maximum wind speed of 62 to 88 kph or 34 to 47 knots
• severe tropical storm

  a tropical cyclone with maximum wind speed of 89 to 117 kph or 48 to 63 knots
• typhoon

  a tropical cyclone with maximum wind speed of 118 to 220 kph or 64 to 120 knots
• super typhoon


  a tropical cyclone with maximum wind speed exceeding 220 kph or more than 120 knots
• typhoons

  originate in the pacific ocean
• hurricane


  form in the atlantic ocean
• weather disturbances and other atmospheric behaviors are monitored by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration
• weather disturbances and other atmosphere behaviors are monitored through weather surveillance using Doppler Radar
• the doppler radar is an instrument that is capable of locating any forms of precipitation and estimating its intensity and strength as it moves and progresses
• thunderstorm also known as an electric storm
• thunderstorm


  is a heavy rain with thunder and lightning
• thunderstorm


  usually happen in summer because the atmosphere has high humidity and high temperature
• floods


  are characterized by water that accumulates typically on dry land due to heavy rain or an improper drainage system
• flash flood 


  is the rapid rise of water after a heavy rainfall
• storm surge


  is an abnormal rise in coastal waters due to a massive force from the sea or from the air above the sea which may be triggered by a strong typhoon
• el nino


  is usually associated with the warming of the central and tropical waters of the pacific ocean
• la nina


  has the exact opposite effect which is the cooling of the same areas in a different season
• el nino


  refers to the large-scale warming of the ocean and atmosphere across the central and east-central equatorial pacific
• la nina


  refers to the abnormal cooling of the ocean temperatures in the equatorial zones of the pacific