Around 60 percent of local government buildings nationwide are not equipped with emergency power supplies that would last 72 hours, a crucial time frame for saving lives during a disaster, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency.
Aggregated data for all 1,741 municipalities, released Thursday, showed that only 717, or 41.2 percent, were adequately equipped in line with the guideline as of June, highlighting the frailty of facilities expected to act as bases for rescue efforts in disaster-hit areas.
The agency cited the difficulty in storing large volumes of fuel due to a lack of funds and space, although the number of municipalities that were adequately equipped had risen from 627 at the same time last year.