MANILA, Philippines – Interior and Local Government Secretary Manuel Roxas II on Tuesday, December 9, assured local government units (LGUs) hit by Tropical Depression Ruby (Hagupit) that they will receive relief goods, even as government continued to encounter difficulties in getting to them due to impassable roads.

Roxas flew to Eastern Visayas ahead of Ruby’s expected landfall in the region. Ruby, which started off as a super typhoon, eventually weakened into a tropical depression as it made landfall 5 times this week.

“We are doing our very best to coordinate and communicate with all affected LGUs to ensure that relief goods are delivered to those who need them,” Roxas said in a statement Tuesday, December 9.

More than 3,400 barangays (villages) in 8 regions were affected by Ruby, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction Council. Some 1.7 million Filipinos were affected by Ruby, the NDRRMC said.

Roxas led the government’s “National Frontline Team” in assessing Eastern Samar towns where Ruby made landfall at its strongest. (READ: Why there’s #ZeroCasualty in some areas hit by Ruby)

According to Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda, “many major supply routes are now passable” in Eastern Visayas after clearing operations. Lacierda was also with Roxas as part of national government’s frontline team.

In the Eastern Visayas region alone, some 804 evacuation centers are still being used by 93,100 families, said Lacierda in a separate field bulletin on Tuesday, December 9.

Power is still down in Eastern Samar but communication lines will soon be restored.

“As Secretary Mar Roxas said, the Frontline Team’s priority is still the distribution of food supplies, but the area is now past the emergency phase,” said Lacierda.

Government drew criticism in 2013 for its inability to quickly distribute relief goods in the aftermath of Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan). Yolanda battered the Eastern Visayas region, particularly the regional capital Tacloban City. (READ: Typhoon Ruby: Have we learned lessons from Yolanda?)

Roxas, alongside Social Welfare Secretary Dinky Soliman and Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, led post-Yolanda operations in Tacloban City. – Rappler.com