Over P1M worth of PHIVOLCS equipment monitoring Mt. Pinatubo stolen

GMA Network

2 days ago

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) on Wednesday reported that valuable equipment at the San Jose Observation Station in Tarlac have been stolen.
Among the missing items is a Kinemetrics Q330HRS+ Quanterra digitizer worth approximately P1.144 million. The device records and converts earthquake signal data from seismic sensors into usable formats.
The station's solar batteries and solar controller, worth approximately P70,000, were also stolen, PHIVOLCS said.
State seismologists said they discovered that the seismic vault of the San Jose Observation Station was forced open and its equipment stolen during a routine maintenance activity.
PHIVOLCS, however, noted that the thieves failed to steal the seismic sensor that was buried 20 meters deep into the ground.
During a press conference, Ma. Antonia Bornas, PHIVOLCS Volcano Monitoring and Eruption Prediction Division chief, said the recent theft occurred on the evening of July 28, as the last transmission was recorded at 8:19 p.m.
'So, typically, sa gabi po talaga nangyayari ang mga thefts (typically, thefts happen at night),' Bornas said.
Bornas noted that the stolen equipment contains little copper.
'Meron itong (the equipment has) copper, but it's not much,' Bornas said. 'Yung technology kasi yung mahal dyan (the technology is expensive). It's not really the material. It's the technology of a web digitizer.'
She further said, 'And of course, in-import pa natin yan from our supplier sa US. Malaki yung importation and custom fees n'yan which we also pay.'
(And of course, we also import that from our supplier in the US. The importation and customs fees are high, and we cover those too.)
PHIVOLCS also noted that today's theft is the third incident at the station.
The first incident was on Oct. 30, 2024, where one solar panel was stolen, while two solar panels were taken on Dec. 17, 2024.
Bornas said they had already replaced the stolen solar panels.
She added that the area has no CCTV since it drains power, and the station needs to prioritize its monitoring instruments.
'So we still need to come up with a way para makapaglagay tayo ng CCTV system dito sa ganitong station (to install a CCTV system in our station) for safeguarding it,' Bornas said.
Under the Risk Reduction and Preparedness Equipment Protection Act, those caught stealing or unauthorized taking, selling, or buying stolen government risk reduction and preparedness equipment will face a penalty of 12 to 15 years of imprisonment or a fine ranging from P1 to P3 million.
Meanwhile, PHIVOLCS Director Teresito Bacolcol explained that the stolen equipment poses a danger to the safety of residents covered by the monitoring station.
'Ang equipment na ito ay para sa early warning ng ating mga aktibong bulkan, so nakikiusap kami sa mga residente, hindi lang ng mga active volcanoes, magtulungan tayo at bantayan ang ating gamit,' Bacolcol said.
(These equipment is for the early warning of our active volcanoes, so we ask residents, not just those near active volcanoes, to help us protect it.)
'Ito ay para sa ating kaligtasan. Ang pagkawala ng gamit ay hindi lang pagnanakaw sa gobyerno, ito ay pagnanakaw ng proteksyon ng komunidad," he added.
(This is for our safety. The loss of this equipment is not just theft from the government, it's theft of the community's protection.)
Commissioned in February 2022, the San Jose Observation Station operates a borehole seismic sensor for recording volcanic earthquakes caused by magma intrusion beneath Pinatubo Volcano as well as for detecting tectonic earthquakes for the Philippine Seismic Network.
It has provided data for locating volcano tectonic earthquakes generated by deep-seated magma beneath the Pinatubo edifice.
Those who may have information on the stolen equipment may contact PHIVOLCS via the following numbers: ([phone] to 79 loc. 310 and 311. — RF, GMA Integrated News