1 month ago
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THE Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has maintained a high alert status for its Quick Response Teams (QRTs) and ground personnel following Mt. Bulusan's eruption on Tuesday evening.
Assistant Secretary Irene Dumlao of the DSWD's Disaster Response Management Group (DRMG) said that Secretary Rexlon Gatchalian has ordered the agency's Bicol regional office to work overtime to address the consecutive volcanic eruptions.
"The DSWD Bicol Region's logistics and relief supplies have already been prepositioned in areas affected by the last eruption," Dumlao said on Wednesday, April 30.
Following President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s directive, Secretary Gatchalian flew to Sorsogon on Tuesday, April 29, to confirm DSWD's readiness, with prepositioned family food packs and relief items, to support affected communities in the Bicol Region.
Nearly 180,000 family food packs (FFPs) are already stockpiled in the region, supplementing the initial 20,000 FFPs distributed to families in Sorsogon province affected by the volcanic activity.
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The DSWD has provided P15.7 million worth of humanitarian aid, including food and non-food items, to local government units supporting families affected by the volcanic eruption.
According to the DSWD's Disaster Response Operations Management, Information and Communication (Dromic) report, a total of 98,315 individuals from 20,996 families across 65 villages in the province have been affected by the eruption.
"Currently, there are 339 families or around 1,271 persons, taking temporary shelter at the four evacuation centers," Dumlao said.
The DSWD advises affected residents to stay alert and use protective masks or wet cloths to avoid inhaling ash from the recent eruption.
