MANILA – The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is ready for a prolonged restiveness of Mt. Kanlaon as humanitarian aid to families displaced by the recent eruption reached PHP6.7 million.
DSWD Assistant Secretary for Disaster Response Management Group (DRMG) Irene Dumlao on Thursday said the humanitarian assistance includes family food packs (FFPs) and non-food items (FNIs), including sleeping and hygiene kits.
She said the DSWD has so far prepositioned 1,508,038 boxes of FFPs throughout the country ready for dispatch to augment the food supplies of disaster-affected local government units (LGUs).
“Matatagpuan po yan sa mga spokes, hubs, and last miles ng ating ahensya. Kung magpapatuloy ang epekto ng pagputok ng Mt. Kanlaon, nakahanda po ang DSWD (These can be found in the spokes, hubs, and last miles of our agency. If the impact of the eruption of Mt. Kanlaon will continue, the DSWD is ready),” the DSWD spokesperson said during the weekly DSWD Media Forum.
Dumlalo said the DSWD, particularly its Field Offices 6-Western Visayas and 7-Central Visayas, continue to augment relief assistance to affected LGUs.
Camp Coordination and Management
In addition to resource augmentation, Dumlao said Secretary Rex Gatchalian went to Negros Island a day after Mt. Kanlaon’s eruption on December 9 to personally check the situation of the internally displaced persons (IDP) and ensure safe spaces in the evacuation centers for vulnerable individuals.
The DSWD’s Western Visayas Field Office and the La Carlota City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) also conducted monitoring and assessment at the La Carlota City evacuation Center in Negros Occidental on Wednesday.
During the inspection, the DSWD-FO 6 and CSWDO personnel checked the evacuation center for functional facilities such as a community kitchen, separate comfort rooms for males and females, well-lit halls, presence of child-friendly space, women-friendly space, and a breastfeeding area.
A total of 654 families or 2,314 individuals are taking temporary shelter in the six evacuation centers in La Carlota City, according to the DSWD’s Disaster Response Operations Management, Information and Communication (DROMIC) report as of 6 a.m. Thursday.
The La Castellana Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office (MSWDO) personnel also conducted house rules orientation for IDPs in La Castellana Elementary School evacuation camp.
Dumlao said 2,825 families or 9,328 individuals are currently seeking shelter in 11 evacuation centers in the municipality of La Castellana in Negros Occidental.
The DSWD 7-Quick Response Team (QRT) visited the IDPs staying at the Jose B. Cardenas Memorial High School evacuation center in Canlaon City to check and assess their situation.
Both FOs have already deployed their Mobile Command Center (MCC) units to provide internet connectivity and serve as charging stations for concerned stakeholders.
“The MCC ensures the timely submission of data and information to the DSWD Central Office’s Disaster Response Command Center whenever communication lines are cut due to the effects of the Kanlaon Volcano eruption,” Dumlao said. (PNA)