THE Office of Civil Defense-Regional Disaster and Risk Reduction Management Office (OCD-RDRRMC)-Davao Region said that more than P12 million worth of relief assistance has been provided to the families affected by the series of strong tremor in Davao Region alone.
In an interview on Saturday with Marvin Samson, chief operations officer of OCD-Davao, he said they have already recorded a total of five fatalities and at least 162 injured following the three powerful earthquakes which occurred in October. Two people are also still missing after a landslide in Barangay Upper Bala in Magsaysay, Davao del Sur. The area is near the epicenter of the earthquake, which is in Tulunan, North Cotabato.
Based on the statement of OCD 11, the government, through its response mechanism, has been providing the needed assistance and support to the affected communities since day one following the quakes. The OCD-RDRRMC-Davao Emergency Operations Center is the coordination hub for the ongoing response operations in the region.
As of November 2, a total of P12,305,185 worth of assistance, in the form of food, shelter, financial, and health, was already provided to the affected families and individuals by the RDRRMC-Davao.
Samson said during their assessment after the first 6.3 magnitude earthquake, there were already houses where cracks have been observed and identified several establishments which may be risky because of their instability.
“Kasi we were struck by 6.3 then 6.6, and then aftershock na 6.5. We assessed last two weeks ago, during sa aming assessment may mga partially damaged and we expect na ‘yong mga partially damaged magiging totally damaged ‘yong mga houses doon,” Samson said.
On November 4 to 8, they are scheduled to conduct another round of assessment in several houses and buildings in Magsaysay, Bansalan, and Matanao, all in Davao del Sur.
The series of strong earthquakes brought massive damages to infrastructures and even caused psychological distress to the affected individuals in the whole of Mindanao.
“To continuously provide all the needed relief and rehabilitation efforts, all concerned RDRRMC 11 member agencies are still conducting field assessments and validation of the damages especially to those families who incurred and/or lost their houses. In addition, the RDRRMC 11 Response Cluster was already activated to efficiently and effectively provide and manage the disaster response operations in the region,” the OCD statement read.
Amid the disaster, some individuals have donated different kinds of assistance mostly food, water, kitchen utensils, and clothing to the earthquake-stricken areas of Davao Region.
More groups, organizations, and individuals have also signified their intent to provide help to the community.
“We would like to request and remind all groups, organizations or individuals who wish to provide in-kind or cash assistance to always have direct coordination with Regional and Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Councils to ensure that all affected communities or families will be able to receive the necessary assistance,” the OCD statement added.