Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Corazon Juliano-Soliman and Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas met with the interagency disaster management team in Bohol to discuss right approaches to address the needs of quake victims.

Secretary Soliman recognized the presence of the humanitarian team of the United Nations headed by Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in the Philippines Luisa Carvalho during the meeting and acknowledged that their inputs are appreciated at this point since interventions are slowly moving towards early recovery and rehabilitation.

DSWD Assistant Secretary Camilo Gudmalin who presented updates on relief operations in the quake-stricken areas said that the Department is currently validating the number of families with damaged houses together with the humanitarian groups.

“We need to think about shelter at this time. We are gathering data on the number of totally and partially damaged houses from the field and the humanitarian groups can help us both in gathering data and in building temporary and permanent shelters for those who have no means to rebuild,” Assistant Secretary Gudmalin said.

Assistant Secretary Gudmalin explained that the Department and the local government of Bohol have already reached thirty-two (32) municipalities in Bohol, catering to over 95,497 families focusing on the hardest hit municipalities of Loon, Maribojoc, Tubigon, Antequera, Calape, Inabanga, Catigbian, Carmen and Tagbilaran.

Assistant Secretary Gudmalin added that the total number of damaged houses in Bohol is now 33,730 with 8,665 totally damaged and 25,065 partially damaged.

On the other hand, Bohol Governor Edgardo Chatto reported that the provincial government has also maximized the assistance of private individuals and groups that donated goods, volunteered their services, and shared their vehicles to transfer goods to affected areas.

Relief distribution

Aside from meeting with the interagency disaster team, Secretaries Soliman and Roxas joined by Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda led the distribution of food packs in Loon and Carmen, Bohol.

Secretary Soliman said that the DSWD has provided a total of 5,324 food packs in Loon and 1,500 in Carmen.  Based on reports, a total of 42,800 persons were affected in Loon and 23,150 persons in Carmen by the 7.2 magnitude earthquake.

A community-based evacuation camp was put up in Barangay Katipunan in Carmen sheltering seventy-nine (79) families coming from 3 sitios located at the foot of the mountain.  Residents here are afraid to go back to their houses for fear of getting hit by falling debris.

Rosalina Donato, 41, said she and her family have not returned to their house since    the earthquake occurred, as they are afraid the mountain would entirely collapse. “Hadlok na mi mubalik pa sa balay sa pagkaron kay sigey pa ug linog basin unya maglandslide matabunan mi sa sulod sa among mga balay. (We are afraid to go back to our house for now because the aftershocks might cause landslide and we might get buried in our house),” she said.

After the relief goods distribution, the three Secretaries visited the families in the makeshift tents set-up by the local government units.  ###