The Davao City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) is stepping up efforts to identify and mark areas traversed by the Dacudao and Lacson faults as part of the city’s preparations for a potentially destructive earthquake.
CDRRMO head Alfredo D. Baloran said the local government, in coordination with the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), is continuing its “Walk the Fault” activities to pinpoint the actual traces of the faults and inform communities living near them.
He noted that the city’s Third District includes extensive mountainous areas where residential communities and developments are also located, making accurate fault identification crucial to disaster preparedness.
Baloran said the city is already preparing for another “Walk the Fault” activity scheduled this month, which he described as the fifth activity under the ongoing effort.
He said the activity aims to establish the fault traces from end to end, particularly because some communities and structures were developed before the fault lines were precisely identified using newer technical equipment.
“Because there are some areas naa na’y mga residents, naa na’y mga constructions nga gihimo because nauna man gud. Nauna ang development before the identification of the fault lines. Karon pa nanggawas ang atong mga technicals, na mga equipment that would identify, that could identify yung mga fault lines,” he added.
The CDRRMO is working to complete the identification of five fault segments in Davao City, with Baloran emphasizing the need to map the faults continuously from one end to the other.
“We are trying to finish kining atong five segments na naa sa Davao nga dapat we have to identify, kailangan from end to end, para ma-inform nato ang the general public,” he said.
Baloran said as part of the public information campaign, the city has installed warning signs in areas where fault traces have already been identified. He said more signs are also planned under the city government’s 2026 projects.
“Additional signages would be installed sa amoang na-identify na na mga areas,” Baloran said.
He said some residential subdivisions have already been found to be directly traversed by fault lines, prompting the CDRRMO to brief affected residents on earthquake preparedness.
Baloran stressed that identifying the fault line itself is already an important step in protecting communities because residents and developers can take the necessary precautions once the hazard is clearly established.
He clarified that being located near a fault line does not automatically prohibit development, but structures must comply with safety requirements.
Baloran emphasized the need for resilient structures in areas near active faults as the city continues to strengthen its earthquake preparedness and risk-reduction measures.
