• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Local government units (LGUs) affected by the latest eruption of Mt. Kanlaon in Negros Island are seeking help from the national government as their disaster funds are now almost depleted.
More residents have evacuated after the permanent danger zone has been extended from four to six-kilometer radius when the volcano’s status was raised to Alert Level 3.
Those that have sounded the alarm are La Castellana town in Negros Occidental and Canlaon City in Negros Oriental that need to feed thousands of their affected residents on a daily basis.
Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said that while the provincial government exerts efforts to assist them, they are also banking on the national government, especially the Department of Social Welfare and Development, to continuously provide the affected LGUs with food packs.
“I hope we can continue to provide water and liquified petroleum gas for cooking. There is also a need for sanitary kits and sleeping kits,” he added.
Donors can either go directly to La Castellana or any other LGU of their choice, the governor said.
As of Dec. 17, the Office of the Civil Defense reported that the evacuation rate is now 99 percent, with 3,799 families, composed of 15,083 persons, evacuated from 15 barangays of the municipality of La Castellana as well as the cities of Bago, La Carlota and Canlaon.
La Castellana remained the most affected locality with 1,134 families or 5,670 persons displaced by the eruption.
Lacson said that he was told by Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro that he will ask the help of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
“In the meantime, we do it ourselves and the donors,” he added.
Canlaon City, which reported a 97.9 percent evacuation rate, accommodates 1,719 families, comprising 5,530 persons, in evacuation centers.
Edna Lou Masicampo, Canlaon City public information officer, earlier said that their disaster funds are now almost depleted, as they started to use it during the last eruption in June this year.
Alert Level 3 remains hoisted over Mt. Kanlaon, which means ongoing magmatic activity that could lead to further explosive eruptions.
In the past 24 hours before Tuesday, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology recorded four ashing events, which lasted from six minutes to 35 minutes, and logged 32 volcanic quakes. | GB
