DSWD needs P614 M more to help Nina victims

MANILA, Philippines - Typhoon victims need help and the government, along with other sectors, is trying to provide relief to affected areas.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) needs an additional P614 million to provide relief to areas battered by Typhoon Nina as other government agencies continue to provide help to those affected by the disaster.

Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo said the amount would be used to provide family packs, emergency shelter assistance and other needs of survivors.

“We will be preparing a proposal for the emergency shelter assistance. So that it will be requested from DBM (Department of Budget and Management) because they are about to close their books for 2016,” Taguiwalo said in a press conference in Malacañang yesterday.

The number of affected families continued to rise as regions submitted their reports, the DSWD said. The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported that three persons died while 10 others went missing during the onslaught of Nina in the Visayas, Bicol and Southern Tagalog.

NDRRMC executive director and Office of Civil Defense (OCD) administrator Ricardo Jalad identified the fatalities as Roel Gregorio, 43, and Locela Periga, 60, of Quezon; and Lyka Mae Banayal of Parañaque City, one of the crewmembers of the sunken roll-on, roll-off Starlite Atlantic ferry.

Some of the missing are Ramil Pace of Eastern Samar; and Michale Merjan and Zaldy Merjan of Oriental Mindoro. All three were swept away in flashfloods that hit their villages.

Search is also ongoing for missing MV Starlite crewmembers identified as Oscar Torregosa, Ronny Gargar, Adolfo Manalo, Edello de la Cruz, Jasper Endozo, Ronmark Hidalgo and Joven Cabrera.

All seven Starlite crew, according to Jalad, could have drowned after their vessel sank between Matuko and Isla Verde islands due to big waves and strong winds spawned by Nina.

But the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said it was not discounting the possibility that some of those in the ferry, including 11 cadets doing their on-the-job training on board the ship, could be trapped inside the vessel. 

PCG Southern Tagalog district commander Captain Julius Caesar Victor Marvin Lim said they have yet to interview the 14 crewmen who were rescued as they remain focused on search and rescue operations.

Lim said their divers failed to locate the ship that sank on Dec. 26  near the vicinity of Balahibongmanoc Island in Tingloy, Batangas.

As of yesterday, the OCD said Nina destroyed P681.2 million in agricultural crops and infrastructure.

According to Sen. Loren Legarda, there are more than enough funds available for the relief and rehabilitation of the areas affected by the typhoon under the 2016 and 2017 national budgets.

Under this year’s budget, Legarda said the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund still has up to P4.963 billion unused, which she said could be used to immediately start recovery and rehabilitation in affected areas. She said this would be carried over to 2017, where P15.755 billion was allocated by Congress for the fund.

The Philippine Red Cross appealed for donations to help the families and communities affected by Nina. It said donations would be utilized to cover the cost of relief operations and maintain adequate provision of food items such as hot and ready-to-eat meals and non-food items such as blankets, plastic mats, mosquito nets, hygiene kits, jerry cans and tarpaulins.

The Church-run Radio Veritas reported that Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle called on parishes and churches to have a second collection during masses on Jan. 1, New Year’s Day, which falls on a Sunday.

Caritas Manila executive director Fr. Anton Pascual said aside from the typhoon victims, part of the amount to be collected would be given to the estimated 1,000 families affected by the recent fire along NIA Road in Barangay Pinyahan, Quezon City. Caritas Manila is the social arm of the Archdiocese of Manila.

Pascual said they earlier gave P1.3 million in food and shelter assistance to the Archdiocese of Caceres in Naga, Camarines Sur, Diocese of Virac in Catanduanes and Diocese of Legazpi in Albay.

They also gave 600 relief packs, 200 thermos and 200 hygiene kits to the Diocese of Gumaca in Quezon province.

But the Caritas official said much help would still be needed for the Diocese of Legazpi while the Archdiocese of Lipa, Batangas is also asking for food assistance for the 1,934 families and shelter assistance for the 626 families who were victims of the recent typhoon.

The provincial government of Batangas declared the area under a state of calamity on Wednesday as Nina made its fifth, sixth and seventh landfalls in Verde Island, Tingloy and Calatagan, causing flooding in some barangays.

The city government of Davao will extend P11 million in financial assistance to the victims of Nina, which forced thousands of people to abandon Christmas celebrations and flee to evacuation shelters in Catanduanes province and other areas in Bicol.

The financial assistance was approved by the city council following a special session on Thursday conducted upon the request of Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio.

Nina, which hit southern Luzon last Christmas, has affected 923,485 persons and 206,812 families in 813 barangays.

Of the affected families, more than 590,000 persons or more than 131,000 families were displaced. More than 154,000 people are still in evacuation centers as of yesterday. The typhoon also damaged more than 76,000 houses.

The DSWD and local governments have so far provided P46.55 million worth of assistance to affected communities.

Taguiwalo cited the need to reach island provinces and areas that are geographically isolated.

“If the roads are not yet cleared like in Catanduanes, there will be delays in the giving of goods… We are seeking the help of our colleagues from OCD to determine if we need to airlift goods,” she said.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has deployed 30 chainsaws to help speed up the clearing operations in areas devastated by Nina.

DENR Undersecretary for Field Operations Isabelo Montejo said, “This is to assist our local government units (LGUs) and the Department of Public Works and Highways in the clearing operations and in harnessing fallen trees cluttering roads, which affected the delivery of relief assistance to affected communities.”

The DENR encouraged making use of the uprooted trees to build temporary shelters for typhoon survivors. It also promised to provide assistance to affected DENR employees.

Tall and big trees, including coconut, can be used to repair damaged buildings, houses and other structures.

Meanwhile, the DENR also directed regional offices in Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Bicol and Eastern Visayas to conduct damage assessment in planting sites under the National Greening Program for possible rehabilitation and replanting efforts.     

Warnings 

Fishing boats and small sea vessels in Northern Luzon are still being advised not to go out to sea despite Nina’s exit from the Philippine area of responsibility Wednesday.

The OCD said a gale warning had been raised in the seaboards of Batanes, Calayan, Babuyan, Cagayan, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Isabela, La Union and Pangasinan.

Rough to very rough seas are expected in these areas with a wave height of 3.4 to 4.5 meters. Larger sea vessels are alerted against big waves.

Disaster authorities have also raised flood alarm after Magat dam in Ramon, Isabela has breached its critical level following heavy rains yesterday.

The reservoir posted 193.17 meter water level which led dam management to release water at one of its floodgates by noon, said the National Irrigation Administration-Magat River Integrated Irrigation System.  – With Evelyn Macairan, Rainier Allan Ronda, Michael Punongbayan, Ed Amoroso, Raymund Catindig, Rhodina Villanueva, Non Alquitran, Edith Regalado, Marvin Sy