Bohol’s newfound fault: What’s in a name?

Voltaire Tupaz

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The newly discovered fault shows the potential of becoming an attraction for tourists, students of nature and geology, and disaster preparedness advocates

GREAT WALL OF BOHOL. The trace of the newly discovered North Bohol Fault starts in Inabanga. Photo by Phivolcs

MANILA, Philippines –  Something positive is coming out of the 7.2-magnitude quake that has brought Bohol to its knees.

The newly discovered fault – projected to traverse at least 5 towns – shows the potential of becoming an attraction for tourists and, most likely, students of nature and geology as well as disaster preparedness advocates.

Authorities, however, are still discussing how to harness the potentials of such idea.

For one, how do you call the fault? National and local authorities initially had some debate over it.

For another, this is the first time a museum built around a geologic feature would be set up in the Philippines, and the closest model for running and promoting such a museum is in Japan.

Transforming the spectacular ground rupture and the ruins of the earthquake into tourism destinations will form part of the reconstruction and rehabilitation plan of the province which Governor Edgar Chatto and other local officials will craft in two weeks.

In an interview with Rappler as Bohol entered the early recovery phase, Chatto stressed his province “will not let go of any opportunity to rise back to its feet.” 

Experts from the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) have so far mapped at least 6 kilometers of the fault’s surface, from Barangay New Anonang in Buenavista town, to the Barangay Napo in the next town of Inabanga. 

Geologist Maria Isabel Abigania, who heads the Phivolcs team mapping the fault, said they expect the fault to run 40-60 kilometers and extend up to Loon and Maribojoc, some of the towns which were isolated for days after the October 15 earthquake.

Actually, hindi pa namin nakikita ‘yung [buong] fault – ‘yun ‘yung projection pa lang. In terms of surface evidence beyond Inabanga and Buenavista, hindi pa namin siya nakikita,” she said. (Actually, we haven’t seen the entire fault – it’s just the projected length. In terms of surface evidence, we have not seen what’s beyond Inabanga and Buenavista.)

Phivolcs has installed temporary seismic stations to scan what’s happening beneath the province and to monitor aftershocks as small as magnitude 1 or 2.

“The aftershocks would define where the rupture is, where the fault plane is,” Abigania said.

Learning from the Marikina Fault mistake

The fault is now officially called the North Bohol Fault, according to Phivolcs.

For tourism promotion purposes, however, Phivolcs geologists told provincial and town officials in a meeting on Monday, October 28, that they could also nickname the fault “Great Wall of Bohol,” a pun on the ancient Great Wall of China.

Inabanga Mayor Josephine Socorro Jumamoy is unhappy about the name. She wanted it called the Inabanga Fault, and said she was not consulted on the final name of the fault.

“I wanted to tell the team from Phivolcs that it should be named Inabanga Fault. We have to be specific, just like Marikina Fault,” Jumamoy told Rappler in a mix of English and Filipino.

“Because of that fault, nalagay sa mapa ang Inabanga. Para talagang natutukan, ba?” she stressed. (Because of that fault, Inabanga was put on the map. We were thrust into the spotlight.)

Abigania said they follow a process in identifying and naming faults. That process include consultations with local government units involved, and Phivolcs Director Renato Solidum and Bohol Governor Edgar Chatto had discussed this.

Phivolcs cannot name the fault after ground zero because it would be misleading and would create confusion, just like what happened with the Marikina Fault.

The Marikina Fault stretches from the Sierra Madre mountain ranges, cutting through Bulacan, the eastern part of Metro Manila including Marikina, and ending in Tagaytay City in Cavite. Because of its old name, however, people had a misconception that the geohazard was only in Marikina.

The name has since been corrected – the West Valley Fault.

Ayaw namin siyang ipangalan sa isang town kasi magkakaroon ng notion ang mga tao na doon lang dumadaan ang fault, eh. We don’t want to have another Marikina Valley Fault na nagdulot ng kaguluhan,” Abigania told Rappler.

(We no longer want to name a fault after one town because it creates the notion that the fault only runs along the area. We don’t want to have another Marikina Valley Fault which caused confusion.)

Geologic museum proposed

Phivolcs is proposing to create a museum along the fault, where a section of the ground rupture will be preserved.

By the looks of it, the blocks of rock on two sides of the fault were compressed, causing one wall to move upward.

The prominent wall of rock, pushed up to as as high as 5 meters, cuts across farmlands in a village in Indanga. 

The longest, continuous stretch of fault scarps Phivolcs has verified and mapped is located in Barangay Anonang in Inabanga. It is about 2 kilometers long. 

A wall will be built around a section of this surface rupture to protect it from erosion, Abigania said.

The suggestion was inspired by similar museums in Japan like the Kobe Earthquake Museum, which showcases interactive and informative displays and presentations on the lessons of the 1995 disaster that struck the city. 

Jumamoy, who wants to build one in her town, welcomed the idea, saying that the provincial government and other agencies are behind it. 

A museum along the newly discovered fault will be a reminder not only of the impact of the tragedy but also of how the people of Bohol recovered from it. Rappler.com

 

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