THE Army’s 53rd Infantry Battalion (IB) has extended humanitarian assistance and disaster response support to flood and landslide-affected communities in Davao Region.
This, as the 53IB facilitated the transport of 15,000 family food packs of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) regional office on Friday, February 9, to help the victims of the shear line a trough of low-pressure area in Davao.
The 53IB said in a statement on Sunday, February 11, that the transport was facilitated through the Office of Civil Defense-Zamboanga Peninsula and other concerned government agencies.
Lieutenant Colonel Terence Ylanan, 53IB commander, said they remain committed to extending its support to the affected families.
In a statement, the Municipality of Maco, Davao de Oro reported that as of 6 p.m. Saturday, February 10, 35 bodies had been recovered from the landslide area, with 77 still missing, and 32 individuals injured due to the incident.
The landslide occurred on the evening of Tuesday, February 6 in Zone 1, Barangay Masara in Maco, Davao de Oro, which houses the garage of a mining company.
Majority of the victims were employees of the mining company, who were then on board a bus on their way home. (SunStar Zamboanga)