• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The Office of the Civil Defense estimates that about 124,000 people within a 10-kilometer radius of Kanlaon volcano will be affected if it erupts again, as revealed on Wednesday, Jan. 8, by Task Force Kanlaon chief Raul Fernandez.
In a press briefing at the Provincial Capitol Social Hall in Bacolod City, Fernandez also reported that about P15.3 billion will be needed for 30 days of disaster response operations if Kanlaon erupts again, based on their projections calculated if Alert Level 4 is declared.
He said that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council are already aware of the budget needed should there be a massive evacuation of people.
Citing data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Fernandez said the breakdown of the needed P15 billion is composed of P606,599,482 for food and non-food items, P189,428,931 for water, P507,066,689 for facilities, and P14,008,284,650 for cash assistance.
Himamaylan City in Negros Occidental and Vallehermoso in Negros Oriental have already been identified as hosts of two tent cities in case of another Kanlaon volcano eruption.
The United Nations World Food Programme, with the support of USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance, donated 1,350 family tents to Negros Occidental, which will be used by IDPs in temporary tent cities, according to Fernandez.
At present, there are 4,128 families (13,454 persons) sheltered in 34 evacuation centers, while an additional 2,351 families (7,458 persons) have sought refuge outside those centers, according to OCD reports. | GB
