• CHERYL G. CRUZ
The Department of Social Welfare and Development in Western Visayas said Sept. 11 that it has P144 million worth of food and non-food items in place for Kanlaon response operations.
“We are prepared to immediately respond to the needs of the affected families due to the recently observed unrest of Mt. Kanlaon,” Atty. Carmelo Nochete, DSWD6 director, said in a statement.
He said the DSWD also has a standby fund of P3 million, and has already prepositioned food and non-food items at La Castellana, Negros Occidental, which had the most number of affected families during the Mt. Kanlaon eruption last June 3.
It is likewise closely coordinating with the Emergency Operations Center of the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council for situation updates and synchronized actions.
A team also inspected the Panaad Stadium in Bacolod City for possible Kanlaon response operations.
The stadium is identified as the evacuation center for La Castellana, La Carlota, Bago City, San Carlos City, and Moises Padilla in case the ongoing unrest of Kanlaon escalates, the DSWD said.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said last night that volcanic sulfur dioxide (SO2) gas emission from the summit crater of Kanlaon averaged 11,556 tonnes Sept. 11.
“This is the highest emission from the volcano recorded since instrumental gas monitoring began,” Phivolcs said in a notice of elevated volcanic SO2 gas flux at Kanlaon issued at 7 p.m. “Alert Level 2, or increasing unrest, prevails over Kanlaon, but current activity may lead to eruptive unrest and an increase in the alert level.”
It added that sulfuric fumes were reported in barangays San Miguel in La Carlota City, Codcod in San Carlos City, and Inolingan in Moises Padilla, all in Negros Occidental, and in barangays Masulog and Pula in Canlaon City, Negros Oriental.
The DSWD said representatives from the Negros Occidental Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office and the Disaster Response Management Division inspected the readiness of Panaad Stadium’s facilities to ensure that it can accommodate a large number of internally displaced persons (IDPs).
Meanwhile, La Carlota Mayor Rex Jalando-on extended the suspension of classes at all levels in all schools in barangays Ara-al, Haguimit, San Miguel, and Yubo to Sept. 12.
The directive was based on the latest Phivolcs advisory, the La Carlota Public Information Office explained.
Phivolcs said prolonged exposure to volcanic SO2, especially of communities within direct reach of accumulation from plumes during low wind conditions, can cause irritation of the eyes, throat, and respiratory tract.
People who may be particularly sensitive are those with health conditions, such as asthma, lung disease, and heart disease, the elderly, pregnant women, and children.
Communities living beside river systems on the southern and western slopes, especially those that have already experienced lahars and muddy stream flows, are advised to take precautionary measures when heavy rainfall over the volcano has been forecast or has begun, the Phivolcs stressed. | CGC
