Introduction

The City of Baguio Philippines, also known as the "City of Pines," is one of the
most sought to place during summer due to its cold temperature. The reason was its
elevated location, found in Northern Luzon in between the mountain range of Cordillera
with an elevation of 900 to 1,600m above sea level. Because of this location, Baguio
City is very prone to heavy rain, which causes landslides to the area. According to
Javier et al. (2015), landslides induced by rainfall happen yearly due to southwest
monsoons, tropical cyclones occurring in the area, especially the Cordillera's orographic
lifting mountain range. This phenomenon leaves many casualties in the city. In an article
by Nakasu (2011), the landslide's casualties from the typhoon Pepeng have reached
more than 200; this leaves Baguio very susceptible to landslides.
Landslide occurs when the natural stability of a slope is disturbed. The cause of
this occurrence is a lot; however, the most probable cause was rainfall. Rainfall induced
landslide is very frequent and considered one of the most hazardous causes of a
landslide. It changes as debris flows (flowing slurries of water and other sediments from
slopes); it moves down steep slopes, particularly those that enter stream channels to
blend with additional water and silt (USGS,n.d.). Marc et al. (2018) stated that landslide
caused by heavy rainfall has a significant effect on many individuals' economies and
injuries. Additionally, Tohari (2018) notes that landslide induced by rain has a significant
risk to people and infrastructure.
This case study will unveil the issues caused by rainfall-induced landslides in the
city of Baguio, Philippines. It will also disclose how rainfall-induced landslide affects the
economy, infrastructures, and people around the city. The information gathered will
serve as a guideline, for the construction of the landslide hazard assessment to
minimize and lessen the hazards of rainfall-induced landslide in the area. The
researchers will use analytical approach to break down the cause and effect of rainfall-
induced landslide to formulate a possible solution to the problem.
Statement of the Problem
Considering that the Philippines is a typhoon-prone country that is visited by 20
typhoons annually, Baguio City is also viewed as a geohazard-prone area that is
commonly exposed to storms and heavy rainfalls that usually weaken the ground
leading to landslides or soil erosions that pose a severe threat to residents resulting to
some deaths and worth millions of pesos of damages to properties, in this case,
disaster prevention measures such as the optimization of land use must be strictly
executed (See, 2019). He also added that further studies show that fault lines are
located within areas near the city; thus, earthquakes are usually experienced.
Landslide is very prevalent in Baguio City during storms and heavy rainfalls and
in times of earthquakes (Santiago,2020). According to Paringit (2020, the direction for
overcoming rainfall-initiated landslides has been elusive; hence, it continues to cause
harm and end the lives of numerous individuals at any place throughout the world. The
rainfall-initiated landslides include profoundly dynamic hydrologic, earth surface, and
natural processes that persist over a range of spatial and temporal scales.
According to CDRRMC, on October 02-04, 2009, Typhoon Pepeng arrived in
Baguio City, of which there are 97 landslides recorded that caused so much damage to
their properties. It is one of the causes of deaths in the City during calamities
(Adajar,2020). This rainfall peak brought extensive damage as widespread landslides
happened in Benguet Province and Baguio City, and more than 200 individuals were
reported dead or missing. The significant damage caused was a tremendous landslide
in Little Kibungan, La Trinidad, Benguet Province, where 85 people died. They also
reported that a family of eight people, including six children, was buried along with their
house as the mountainside went down in Kitma, Baguio City (Inokuchi, Nakasu & Sato,
2011).

Rainfall Assesment in Baguio City

The average measurement of rain in Baguio City is shown in Figure 1.1 while the
number of days that rained in a month was shown in Figure 1.2. According to See (n.d.),
the average rainfall in the month of August had exceeded to 950 which was more than
the average rainfall for the month. Based on the chart shown in Figure 1.1 the annual
rainfall of Baguio, accumulated by adding the average rainfalls in twelve months, had
reached 3562.9 mm. According to PAGASA, Baguio City along with eastern samar, and
eastern Surigao, receives the greatest amount of rainfall annually.
900 Rainfall (mm) 847.9
800
700 670.8
600 582.3

500 480.6

400
331.1
300 262.4
200 152.3
102.9
100 55.9
0 35.8 28.8
12.1
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Figure 1.1 (Average Rainfall in Baguio, Philippines)

ra in fa ll d a y s
30
27
26
25
25
22
19
20
17

15

9 9
10
5
4 4
5
2

0
J an F eb Mar Ap r May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oc t Nov D ec

Figure 1.2 (Average Rainfall Days)

Hazard Mapping Assessment of Baguio City
The map shown in Figure 2 shows the land susceptibility of the areas in Baguio
City. The map is formed for effective community-based disaster risk management. As
stated by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHILVOLCS), the
most effective way of preventing and reducing landslides' threats is by preparing and
having awareness, which includes public awareness and hazard maps.
To explain the map in Figure 2, the susceptibility of the land is based on their
colors. The red area has high susceptibility, purple has moderate susceptibility, yellow
has low susceptibility, then white has no susceptibility, while areas with white and red
stripes indicate possible areas prone to landslide accumulation.
According to National Risk Reduction Management Center (NDRRMC), areas
with low landslide susceptibility ratings are low to gentle slopes. Inactive or old landslide
and tension cracks located away from a community are considered an area with
moderate landslide susceptibility rating. Areas like this usually have moderate slopes.
Also, areas considered high landslide susceptible usually have active or recent
landslide and tension cracks that would directly affect a community. Also, steep slopes
and prone to landslide damming drainages are included in highly susceptible to a
landslide. Lastly, areas with possible landslide debris accumulation zones are areas
most likely to experience landslide debris accumulation.

Figure 2 (Landslide Hazard Map of Baguio City)

Proposed Solution
This study proposes a possible solution to the problem brought by rainfall-
induced landslides Baguio City, Philippines. An assessment with the average rainfall
and the land susceptibility was made to break down the problem and formulate a
solution. With the accumulation of different information, this study proposes slope
stability solution as a possible solution for the landslide induced by rainfall.
From the interpretation of Figure 2, a big proportion of Baguio City is highly
susceptible to landslide. It was also shown in figure 1.1 and figure 1.2 that Baguio City
accumulates high amount of precipitation and could happen several days a month.
Slope stability is a method of steady designing measures used to lessen the erosion
from disturbed surfaces. The purpose of this method is to stabilize the soil, reduce the
impact of rain, minimize the velocity of overland flow, and to prevent surface
deterioration. The method will include drainage systems, vegetation, and retaining walls.
Drainage system addresses water caused by heavy rainfall installed in the
surface or in the subsurface. This will consist of either ditch lined with materials such as
concrete or permeable piping. The drainage system will safely bring the water away
from the area where landslide cannot be triggered. Vegetation as slope stabilizer an
efficient and non-intrusive approach for stabilization on slopes where the inclined angle
is not steep. Below the ground, the roots of the planted vegetation anchors massive
blocks of soil as they link the dirt, rocks, and other roots underground.
.

Conclusion
The rainfall assessment and the hazard mapping assessment for Baguio City has
provided immense understanding on the slope stability and the effects it would acquire
when

The slope safety system can be developed through this approach that can be
reliably utilized to understand the risk or capability of soil erosion by water, under either
current site conditions or assumed certain progressions of relevant dominating
elements, in a massive area of interest. The study utilizes a few boundaries with
weights relegated according to the landslide's potential cause. The study investigated
and analyzed the selected regions with various systems in creating the guidelines to
attain the main goal, which is to reduce risks.
However, this study was designed to examine and assess the different areas in
Baguio City to create an assessment tool for rainfall-induced landslides for safety and
preparedness and to reduce possible risks. There will be an assessment of Baguio City
areas to achieve the goal, considering other factors caused by the rainfall-induced
problem. These investigations served as a guide in the generation and improvement of
the slope safety system, which will be utilized with risk management.

Recommendation
Most people already knew if our environment is safe or unsafe. Furthermore, we can
take the most preventive measures to take ourselves away from unsafe places like in
the mountains where landslides are prevalent. However, there are many stories of each
one of us, especially to the people who lived in Baguio City. They have fundamental
qualities that make them at risk or not to the rainfall-induced landslide.

The following are the possible recommendations:

 The communities can maximize their capacity to adapt to rainfall-induced
landslide by increasing their income and think of more livelihoods that they can
do, strengthening their social network, and having a better and effective early-
warning system in their area.  
 The authors further recommend using these results in organizing and planning
for the municipality’s disaster risk reduction and management. 
 Administrators can also use the results to create policies and prepare the
communities for future landslide events to expand their level of preparedness.
 The results of this study will be presented to stakeholders of the area, their local
government, and communities to have a better understanding of their exposure
to rainfall-induced landslides.