MANILA – With the resumption of sea travel, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Tuesday ramped up the delivery of family food packs and other relief support to the island province of Catanduanes and other localities battered by Super Typhoon Pepito (international name Man-yi).
“Based on the latest report from our DSWD Field Office (FO) 5 – Bicol Region, the island province of Catanduanes is now safe to reach via water vessels kaya nag-dispatch na agad tayo ng 5, 100 FFPs doon (so we immediately dispatched 5, 100 FFPs there),” Disaster Response Management Group (DRMG) Assistant Secretary Irene Dumlao said in a news release.
The DSWD spokesperson said the delivery is part of the 45, 000 FFPs pledged by Secretary Rex Gatchalian to Catanduanes Governor Joseph Cua and other local officials on Monday.
In addition to the trucks transporting the food packs, the water vessel also transported the DSWD FO-5’s Mobile Command Center (MCC), Dumlao said.
“Apart from deploying it [MCC] to serve as means to boost our disaster coordination, we are eyeing din na maipagamit itong MCC natin sa mga residente na nawalan ng kuryente, tulad nung naging serbisyo rin nito sa ating mga kababayan nitong mga nagdaang mga bagyo (it to be used by residents without electricity, like the services it rendered to our countrymen during the past typhoons),” she added.
The MCCs are tasked with ensuring continuous, effective, reliable, and timely emergency telecommunications support on different disaster reports and relief inventory.
The command center is also being used by affected locals to secure WiFi connection and charge their devices.
Meanwhile, Dumlao said the DSWD is also actively addressing requests for relief support from other regions.
She said the provincial government of La Union has already collected their request for 700 FFPs from the DSWD Field Office 1-Ilocos Region warehouse in San Fernando, La Union.
“Dito naman sa (Here in) Central Luzon, our Field Office personnel have been proactive in releasing FFPs to Aurora province kung saan nag landfall din ang bagyong Pepito (where Pepito made a landfall),” she said.
In Dingalan, Aurora, the DSWD extended 2, 300 FFPs to families and individuals displaced at the height of the typhoon.
Dumlao assured that the department remains steadfast in replenishing, prepositioning, and delivering augmentation support to meet the immediate needs of every disaster-affected Filipino. (PNA)