BAGUIO CITY — Baguio City Rep. Mauricio G. Domogan called for the strict enforcement of structural regulations and mandatory soil testing, particularly for buildings constructed along the city’s vulnerable mountain slopes.

Domogan urged authorities to conduct comprehensive ground inspections to determine soil stability during prolonged heavy rains, warning that unchecked development poses a serious threat to residents.

His call comes after continuous monsoon rains severely saturated the soil across Baguio, triggering dozens of erosions, rockslides and landslides on mountain slopes.

Local disaster monitoring recorded more than 40 landslide incidents across the city, displacing families, damaging or destroying homes and causing casualties.

The worst incident occurred in Purok 2, Barangay Guisad Surong, where a hillside collapsed onto homes, killing 10 people and injuring three others.

Domogan said the recent disasters underscored the vulnerability of Baguio, where steep terrain, unstable soil and dense development increase the risks posed by prolonged rainfall.

Government geological assessments have found that about 85 percent of Baguio consists of hazard-prone terrain, while only 2 percent to 3 percent is considered geologically stable.

The city has a long history of deadly landslides and slope failures caused by extreme rainfall and earthquakes.

During the magnitude 7.7 Luzon earthquake on 16 July 1990, massive slope failures struck Baguio and neighboring Benguet towns, destroying structures and cutting off major access routes, including Kennon and Naguilian roads.

Severe storms have also repeatedly triggered deadly landslides in the mountain city and surrounding areas, including during Typhoon “Feria” in 2001 and Typhoon “Pepeng” in 2009.

Domogan said lessons from previous disasters showed that natural hazards can become more destructive when compounded by human error.

Post-disaster assessments by structural engineers, he noted, found that some building collapses were worsened by compromised engineering standards, including unauthorized additional floors and inadequate site assessments.

He warned that without rigorous enforcement of building codes and mandatory slope inspections, prolonged rainfall could continue to result in preventable disasters.

Domogan urged local authorities to address failures in construction and regulatory enforcement with the same urgency given to natural hazards, emphasizing structural integrity and public safety to prevent further loss of life.