Development of Practical Tools for Vulnerability and Safety Evaluation of Houses in the Philippines

The safety of non-engineered construction is an urgent concern, because it is a primary cause of human casualties. The first step in disaster risk reduction is to understand the risk. For earthquake disaster risk reduction, it is critical that the stakeholders, such as government officers, masons, contractors, community leaders, and residents/house owners, understand the earthquake risk, or damage estimate for their houses. To reduce earthquake disaster risks, residents and house owners must understand these risks and take responsibility for necessary actions with technical advice from professionals. Therefore, simple seismic evaluation methods were developed as awareness tools for non-engineered houses in the Philippines.