Update

As yet another tropical storm has been battering parts of the Philippine island of Luzon over the past few days, leaving thousands displaced, the government has set up a Technical Working Group (TWG) with the aim of improving preparedness for natural hazards and manmade calamities, including conflict...

'The Philippines is one of the world’s most natural hazard-prone countries,' said the director of the ADB’s Poverty Reduction, Gender and Social Development Division, in a call to implement disaster risk reduction. 'Agriculture, health, water resources and infrastructure are likely to be severely impacted by climate change, and displacement of populations is expected.'...

The new improved service is hoped will provide more detailed information for Indian Ocean countries than the current Interim Advisory Service, the Intergovernmental Coordination Group for the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System announced, reports the Epoch Times...

'Making cities more sustainable in the future is one of the greatest challenges facing governments, civil society and the business sector in Asia,' says 'State of Asian Cities 2010/2011,' the first-ever such report by the UN-HABITAT and UNESCAP and UCLG-ASPAC, launched as part of the ongoing Asia Pacific Urban Forum this week, writes Thin Lei Win for AlertNet...

The plan is a mitigating and preparedness tool aimed at reducing disaster loss from natural hazards such as tropical cyclones and complex weather systems. Ifugao, the plan states, is highly vulnerable to the these types of hazards, as well as landslides, mudslides, and flashfloods, reports Dan B. Codamon for PIA...

"The strength (stability) of engineering structures of most nuclear power plants does not meet current regulatory document requirements for stresses that occur from extreme natural impacts," says a newly issued report released to senior government officials, according to AFP...

Sherwan School is one of 691 schools that UNICEF is constructing in earthquake-affected districts of Pakistan, which will benefit around 65,000 children. More than 560 earthquake-resistant schools have been completed to date, reports David Youngmeyer, Chief, Advocacy & Communication Section with UNICEF Pakistan...

Canada's western and northern premiers have called on federal government to create a new long-term disaster mitigation programme to deal with floods, forest fires and other natural hazards, further to the unprecedented flooding and wildfires, reports CBC news...

'Investing in disaster risk mitigation not only saves lives, it also safeguards our social and economic infrastructure, and helps ensure that livelihoods and businesses in our city are able to progress with less interruption,' said Mayor Herbert Bautista, in a report by Chito Chavez for the Manila Bulletin...

Recognizing the political importance and impact of recent disasters, UNISDR and the European Parliament organized a debate "Prevent or react: The EU approach to Disaster Risk Reduction" to discuss the European Union's approach to disaster prevention.