DSWD allots P160 M for ‘Labuyo’ victims

MANILA, Philippines – After Labuyo exited the Philippine area of responsibility on Tuesday, August 13, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) announced it had set aside P160.35 million in emergency relief funds for families affected by the typhoon.

At least 30,782 families or 154,962 people in Northern Luzon, Cagayan Valley, Cental Luzon, Bicol, and the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) were affected by the typhoon, the DSWD reported.

“Local disaster management units have been activated and the DSWD will continue to mobilize its resources to help affected residents,” DSWD Secretary Dinky Soliman said.

As of August 13, according to the agency, it has served at least 85 evacuation centers that shelter at least 7,309 families. It has also helped  5,404 other affected families who sought shelter in the homes of friends and relatives.

Isolated towns

Meanwhile, access remains a challenge to devastated and isolated areas like the towns in Aurora province that need immediate relief and rehabilitation.

“The main concern in Aurora is how to deliver relief goods. We are looking at alternative roads in the area,” National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) spokesperson Rey Balido said in Filipino in a press conference. 

Three towns in Aurora – Casiguran, Dilasag, and Dinalungan – remained isolated, the NDDRMC reported on Tuesday.

Balido said the NDRRMC is anticipating that Aurora officials will put the province under a state of calamity. 

The humanitarian organization ACF International/Action Against Hunger sent a team to Aurora to assess health, food, nutrition, water, sanitation, hygiene, livelihoods, and emergency communication needs of the victims.

The ACF team, supported by the Unicef,  is also expected to help identify needs in the provinces of Nueva Vizcaya, Nueva Ecija, and Quirino. – Rappler.com