DoST sends team to assess quake damage in Negros Oriental

MANILA, Philippines—The Department of Science and Technology (DoST) has deployed a team of experts to conduct post-disaster assessment in Negros Oriental following the 6.9-magnitude earthquake that shook parts of Western and Central Visayas on Monday.

Science Secretary Mario Montejo on Tuesday sent a quick response team composed of geologists, seismologists and information staff from the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology to assess the earthquake damage in Negros Oriental.

The team will visit the towns of Tayasan and Libertad in the province to determine possible hazards created by the quake’s impact, including “landslides, liquefaction, ground rupture and tsunami” near the epicenter of the quake.

In a statement, DoST said the team will also install seismic monitoring equipment to accurately measure the strength of aftershocks in the area.

As of this writing, Phivolcs has recorded close to 900 aftershocks in the Visayas since a previously undiscovered fault line caused the ground to shake in parts of the region before noon Monday.

“We assure our countrymen, especially those in the earthquake-damaged areas, that DoST-Phivolcs is doing its best to monitor all events related to the Cebu-Negros earthquake,” Montejo stated.

“We are doing this to deepen our own knowledge of what happened and continually provide our people with the relevant information they need to understand this earthquake event and cope with its effects,” he said.

Montejo said DoST experts will document quake damage in affected areas in photos and videos and also conduct lectures and distribute information materials in communities to give safety information in case of quakes.