Why?
Over the past decades the strategic location of Tacloban City along the coast and between the islands of Leyte and Samar has enabled it to grow as the Leyte’s main regional economic centre. However, the area is also vulnerable to a number of natural hazards such as coastal storm surges, earthquakes, coastal erosion, landslides and fluvial flooding. The devastating impact of Typhoon Haiyan (locally known as Yolanda) has demonstrated the vulnerable location of the city to these natural hazards. The shape of the bay on which Tacloban is situated worsened the impacts of typhoon Haiyan’s storm surge, devastating the city. Despite the storm surge heading inland for miles in some areas, coastal areas with poorly constructed houses bore the brunt of the tsunami-like wave. Even now, the city is still recovering from the impacts of Haiyan, and damaged buildings are still clearly visible in the urban landscape.