The provincial government of Negros Occidental allocated P50 million for the purchase of construction materials to repair the houses of victims of typhoon Odette in southern Negros.
Provincial Administrator, Atty. Rayfrando Diaz, said the funding was approved as supplemental budget during the session of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan Dec. 21, after the SP ratified the resolution of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council to place the province under a state of calamity.
Bulk of the funding will be allocated for the purchase of GI (galvanized iron) sheets, while the concerned local government units will buy other materials.
The construction materials will be coursed through the Relief Operations Command Center set up in Kabankalan City the other day.
The command center will be the receiving area for all types of donations and will take charge of the distribution to affected residents. The center is near the Lorenzo Zayco District Hospital, the nearest referral hospice for any kind of sickness that might befall resident/s while in the evacuation center.
Diaz, meanwhile, said the bigger volume of donations started arriving, including the 300 sacks of rice from Bacolod Lone District Rep. Greg Gasataya, the 500 jerry cans of potable water for the evacuees, and hundreds of cartons of canned goods, noodles, and nonfood items.
“We have 500 jerry cans sent to the area and more are coming. Gina padul-ong ta sa tagsa ka nearest area to drop the supply of water, while we are waiting for the setup of a potable water station from Sagay City,” he added.
Other local government units, like Cadiz, Talisay, and Bago also dispatched their rescue teams to help in road clearing operations and clearing of debris in government infrastructure damaged by the typhoon.
Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri also donated 200 sacks of rice from his personal funds Dec. 22, Diaz said, adding that the command center should ensure a fair and fast distribution of assistance to all victims.
The province also sent 18 generator sets for use in the charging stations so that the victims will have continuous contact with their relatives. Some gensets are on standby at the DRRMO.
Diaz said 12 teams from the PDRRMO are still in Sipalay helping in the road clearing operations. “Tapos na sa Ilog and Kabankalan. Also, we have teams helping the Isabela LGU remove logs obstructing roads.”
He said Mayor Irene Montilla of Isabela also asked him on how they can utilize the logs or convert these into construction materials for the typhoon victims. — MML
