Bohol quake toll now at 155

MANILA, Philippines – The number of fatalities from the destructive earthquake that jolted parts of the Visayas and Mindanao jumped to 155, authorities said Wednesday.

Over 3 million people were affected by the killer quake.

In Bohol, Police Officer 3 Carl John Legazpi, operations clerk of the provincial office, said on Wednesday that there were 145 killed in the province as of 6:30 p.m.

The town with the most fatalities was Loon with 42 deaths, followed by Maribojoc with 15 and Antequera with 13,

The two individuals trapped inside the Congressman  Natalio Castillo Sr. Memorial Hospital in Bohol that collapsed during the earthquake were recovered dead, National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council spokesman Major Rey Balido said.

There were 291 persons injured and 23 missing.

The Office of Civil Defense in Central Visayas said that nine people were killed in Cebu and one was recorded in Siquijor.

Balido said that 593,561 families or 3,017,814 persons in three provinces were affected. There were 51 evacuation centers put up in Bohol and Cebu City. Some 30,359 of these individuals were housed in temporary shelters. The NDRRMC’s official records in the afternoon listed 144 deaths.

Lieutenant General Roy Deveraturda, commander of Armed Forces Central Command based in Cebu, said that there were no more isolated towns and villages in Bohol, but it would take time to reach some of these areas.

“You just have to take a long route to reach a particular place. While we were hit by a very strong tremor, I believe the response was good. All agencies helped each other,” he said.

NDRRMC said that there were 23 bridges impassable in Bohol, while five roads were closed to traffic.

The Department of Public Works and Highways said that based on initial assessment, damage to roads and bridges has reached P57.8 million in Bohol. In Cebu, damage to properties was pegged at P17.67 million.

The earthquake also crumbled “signature churches” of the province, which were built during the Spanish era. Some of the hills of the famous Chocolate Hills were deformed.

Bohol and Cebu were placed under state of calamity on Tuesday.

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Google puts up Typhoon Pablo crisis map

Internet giant Google set up a crisis map for Typhoon Pablo days before the typhoon ravaged Mindanao.



This crisis map, available in Filipino, shows the typhoon track, landslide- and flood-prone areas, areas under public storm warning signals, and other important information about the disaster.

In a Google Hangout on Dec. 4, Anthony Baxter of Google.org's Crisis Response Team said that they have been doing crisis maps for the Philippines for some years now, starting with Tropical Storm Ondoy in 2009.

"During the crisis we need to inform people about what’s going on, especially for Filipinos overseas who have relatives and loved ones back in the Philippines... After the crisis, how do the people recover?" Baxter said.

"It's part of our corporate social responsibility. Basically, we want people to take the map and use it," he added.

Google's head of outreach team in Southeast Asia Aileen Apolo said that they are working with various government agencies, including PAGASA and specific local government units, and a pool of volunteers to collate data for the crisis map.

"Volunteers have been working with us for the past couple of typhoons. We also have [the] Google Developers group. In the Philippines, we actually have a strong mapping community who even sets up 'Map ups' events across the country," Apolo said.

Baxter also said aside from Ondoy and Pablo, Google was also able to set up crisis maps for Sendong and several earthquakes in the Philippines.

"It's well-received, especially for Filipinos who live abroad. It's an easy way to get in touch with their loved ones," said Apolo.

She added that it has been particularly helpful in showing locations of evacuation areas, and those areas with power cuts.

"It's for the public, crisis responders, including those who work for government agencies," said Baxter.

Baxter also said that the Google crisis map project is still open for development.

"Essentially, it's going to be driven by disasters. There's always work to be done. But it could be improved," he said.

He also added that they are still looking into upcoming technologies and what information is needed for future disasters. — BM, GMA News

source: gmanetwork.com