Few minutes after the occurrence of a damaging earthquake, making timely decisions, especially on the deployment of relief and rescue operations, is very crucial. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) is mandated to issue earthquake bulletins and provide pertinent information to the public after an earthquake. This responsibility becomes very important when large-magnitude earthquakes occur and the public wants to know immediately the impacts and damages such occurrences have caused.

To address this concern, PHIVOLCS-DOST has developed a simple and user-friendly simulation software that can give a rapid estimate of the possible seismic hazards. This can be used for inferring the severity of impacts to various elements-at-risk. This software is called Rapid Earthquake Damage Assessment System (REDAS).

In order to disseminate the use of the software, PHIVOLCS-DOST trained some 50 academic researchers from the five state colleges and universities (SCUs) in Region 1 so that they can use the REDAS effectively and forewarn the concerned agencies in case an earthquake takes place. The participants came from MMSU, University of Northern Philippines, Ilocos Sur Polytechnic State College, Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University, and Pangasinan State University.

Participants brought laptops where the REDAS software was installed. They were taught how to build their own risk database using GPS and maps from Google Earth. The software aims to provide quick and near real-time simulated earthquake hazard map information as a decision support tool for disaster managers during potentially damaging earthquakes. It also targets policy makers and local chief executives to use it as a tool for mainstreaming disaster risk reduction into the local development planning process.

Dr. Orlando F. Balderama, overall coordinator of the REDAS training at MMSU, said the software can model four seismic hazards—ground shaking, liquefaction, landslides and tsunami—and since it hosts exposure data, risk elements can also be plotted.

“Inputs required to produce hazard maps are basic earthquake and fault parameters. To make it multi-hazard in approach, static hazard maps such as volcanic and hydrometerological maps are built-in in the software,” he said adding that its potential to be a risk assessment tool is being enhanced by improving the exposure database, inclusion of a building inventory module, incorporation of vulnerability curves and enhancing its modeling capability to address other natural hazards.

A lecture on how to mainstream hazard assessment into land use planning using REDAS was included in the training package.

The software is still being continuously improved through feedback and inputs from users to make it more attuned to their needs. To date, a total of 14 provinces, 108 towns, and various government institutions in the country have been trained on REDAS application, and PHIVOLCS-DOST is determined to disseminate widely the use of this software to various agencies and local government units.