Families of Alegria firevictims to get P5T each

The Provincial Department of Social Welfare and Development and the municipal government of Alegria will hand over financial assistance worth P5,000 each to the families of a trader and her grandson who perished in a dawn fire last Sunday in sitio Sangi, Alegria town.

Marivic Garces, head of the provincial DSWD, yesterday announced that the said amount will be given to the families of Cerena Bustamante and her grandson Paul Ace who both died when a Sunday dawn fire hit their house, store and warehouse.

However, she will still have to wait for the official report of the municipal DSWD on the death of the two together with their birth certificates, as supporting documents, before the amount could be released.

Garces also said that she is waiting for a go-signal from Governor Gwendolyn Garcia on other assistance the province will be providing, like food supplies during the wake which will be turned over to the victims' families.

Alegria Mayor Raul Guisadio admitted lives and properties could have been protected and saved had there only been a fire truck stationed in their town.

However, he mentioned that the firecycle donated by the Capitol, which is under the custody of the town police, proved to be of great help while they were waiting for fire trucks from the neighboring towns of Moalboal and Malabuyoc to arrive.

It was also learned that the Bustamantes are actually from Dalaguete, but are temporarily residing in Alegria as they are engaged in the sale/refill of liquefied petroleum gas. - Flor Z. Perolina