• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Negros Occidental is now under a state of calamity, as declared on Thursday by the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (PDRRMC), which was convened by its presiding officer, Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson.
The declaration of state of calamity by the PDRRMC, which was unanimously approved by all its members through a resolution, cited the December 9 eruption of Kanlaon volcano, which affected local government units of La Castellana, La Carlota City, Bago City, Pontevedra, Hinigaran, Valladolid, San Enrique, and Binalbagan.
Lacson said there will be a price freeze in all basic commodities, especially face masks, which are now reportedly being sold at P20 to P30 per piece.
He called on businesses not to take advantage of the situation. By keeping the price where it should be, you are actually helping the victims of the Kanlaon volcano eruption, he added.
With the declaration of state of calamity, which is expected to be concurred today, Dec. 13, by the Sangguniang Panlalawigan during its special session, Lacson said the provincial government may now utilize its Quick Reaction Fund (QRF), along with other local government units who want to extend help to the affected victims.
According to Lacson, Task Force Kanlaon head Raul Fernandez called on LGUs to make mandatory evacuations, up to a 6 kilometer radius from the crater of Kanlaon volcano, following the declaration of Alert Level 3.
That will lead to the evacuation of a minimum of 33,806 individuals, the governor said.
Lacson said he was informed by Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro that he will ask President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for additional funds to take care of the affected residents, following recommendation of the office, for internally displaced persons (IDPs) to stay at the evacuation centers for at least three weeks.
Provincial Disaster Program Management Division chief Irene Bel Ploteña reported that there are 3,678 families, composed of 12,409 persons, from 18 barangays of La Castellana, Moises Padilla, Bago, Pontevedra, La Carlota City, and Murcia, who were displaced by the eruption and are now staying inside and outside of designated evacuation centers.
Initial damage to agricultural crops placed at P601,279, while 25,228 livestock were also affected.
Entertaining a worst case scenario, the provincial government of Negros Occidental is also preparing the Panaad Park and Stadium in Bacolod City to accommodate at least 5,000 evacuees, should the permanent danger zone be extended to 10 kilometers from the volcano summit, if Alert Level 4 would be declared.
The raising of the alert status could affect up to 200,000 residents, according to Provincial Administrator Atty. Rayfrando Diaz, citing a study by the provincial government of Negros Occidental.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), local government units (LGUs), and non-government organizations (NGOs) have extended at least P7.933 million worth of humanitarian assistance to families in areas affected by the eruption of Mt. Kanlaon in Negros Occidental since Dec. 9.
The total funds included P6.433 million released by the DSWD, and the rest came from LGUs and NGOs, based on the progress report of the agency, as of Wednesday night.
“We are continuously coordinating with the LGUs to be able to help them,” DSWD Western Visayas Regional Director Arwin Razo said in a statement.*
