Oil spill evacuees head home

ILOILO CITY, Philippines — The remaining 80 families from the oil spill-hit village of Botongon in Estancia, Iloilo can return home anytime this week.

Governor Arthur Defensor Sr. said he inspected the village over the weekend and noted that the condition has improved a lot. "You can no longer smell the bunker fuel," he said.

In a press statement, Defensor said his recommendation was in concurrence with the technical observation of the Department of Health and the Environmental Management Bureau of the DENR, during the regular meeting of Task Force Power Barge 103.

But for those who were rendered homeless, the governor said they could still stay at the evacuation center in Northern Iloilo Polytechnic State College-West Campus.

"If they don't have houses or if they failed to rebuild it, we will let them stay at the evacuation center and wait for the government's bunkhouses to finish," he said.

The DPWH is presently constructing bunkhouses good for 100 families in Brgy. Gogo of Estancia. Each unit, measuring 4.8 meters x 3.5 meters, is made of galvanized iron sheets, plywood and concrete, and costs P835,000.