MANILA, Philippines – NAGBABALA ang Office of Civil Defense (OCD) sa paggamit sa substandard construction materials partikular na ang steel, dahil posibleng magresulta ito ng pagkamatay ng mga tao kung ang kahalintulad na lindol sa Myanmar ang tumama sa Metro Manila.
“Using substandard steel can compromise the strength of buildings, houses, and other structures such as bridges, warehouses, etc. Lives will be at risk if such buildings or structures collapse,” ang sinabi ni Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Undersecretary Ariel Nepomuceno.
Ang Pilipinas ay nakaupo sa ‘Pacific Ring of Fire’ at tahanan ng ‘multiple active fault lines.’ Isa sa pinakamapanganib ay ang West Valley Fault, sumasaklaw sa 100 kilometers tuloy-tuloy sa Quezon City, Marikina, Pasig, Taguig, Muntinlupa, at iba pang bahagi ng Bulacan, Rizal, Laguna, at Cavite.
Ayon sa pag-aaral ng Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), ang magnitude 7.2 earthquake sa may West Valley Fault ay maaaring maging dahilan ng pagguho ng 168,000 buildings at magresulta ng mahigit sa 33,000 katao na mamamatay sa Metro Manila at nakapalibot na mga lalawigan.
“OCD is currently campaigning to raise awareness on the importance of ensuring compliance to the safety provisions of the Building Code,” ang sinabi ni Nepomuceno sabay sabing “We’re hoping that the LGUs will support our call because they are the ones who approve or disapprove building and occupancy permits.”
Binigyang diin din nito ang kahalagahan ng mas mahigpit na regulasyon.
“Importations of construction materials must be strictly regulated and monitored. Locally produced materials must be monitored too. Construction design and implementation must be fully compliant to withstand strong tremors,” ang sinabi pa rin ni Nepomuceno. Kris Jose
