Building houses may take up to eight months: Work to relocate victims begins

CEBU, Philippines — Construction of houses for those who were displaced by the landslides in Naga City can begin once the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) declares the relocation site safe.

The government is eyeing three areas in Naga City: A hectare at a Gawad Kalinga community in Barangay Tina-an, another hectare from Apo Land and Quarry Corporation (ALQC), and a portion of the Balili property that the provincial government plans to donate.

Marcelino Escalada, general manager of the National Housing Authority (NHA), said construction of 320 houses will take place within six to eight months. He has met with Naga Mayor Kristine Chiong to discuss plans.

Chiong said the property in Tina-an is the first priority and it is now up to the DENR to approve it or not, considering that the site is in the same barangay where the landslide occurred.

An assessment team from the DENR central office arrived in Naga last Sunday to start assessing the possible relocation sites.

Escalada said that once NHA gets hold of the DENR clearance, it will take about two weeks before construction begins.

Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) Chairman Eduardo del Rosario said the project will have to be implemented by phase.

Chiong said each unit will have a 28-square meter floor area and would cost P400,000.

The families that have been affected directly by the landslide will be prioritized for phase 1 of the project.

The second phase will involve construction of 536 houses.

The project will be implemented jointly by Naga City, NHA, and First District Rep. Gerald Anthony Gullas.

Meanwhile, Apo Land and Quarry Corporation said it will give P30,000 for each resident who perished in the landslide. Chiong has advised the company to put its pledge into writing.

Earlier, the city government also said it would give P20,000 for each fatality.

As of yesterday, five days after the tragic incident on August 20, authorities recorded 66 deaths.   With bodies still unidentified, the PNP’s Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) conducted swab testing with potential (living) relatives.

The National Bureau of Investigation is also helping. Yesterday, the bureau’s medico legal officer, Rene Cam, said they have identified seven based on scars, previous surgical procedures, birth marks, and ornaments they were wearing when they died.

The bodies that are unidentified are sheltered temporarily at the Cosmopolitan Funeral Homes in Cebu City.

As authorities continue to conduct search and rescue, a group of Naga residents went to the Provincial Capitol to urge the government to stop quarrying in the city.

One of those who went, Julieta Sasuman, 67, said cracks have been seen on the ground in Barangay Mainit due to quarrying, which have put lives and homes in danger.

Mainit is located kilometers away from the landslide area. (FREEMAN)