DSWD: P720k worth of relief aid sent as initial help to Ramil victims

The Department of Social Welfare and Development has initially deployed P720,925 worth of relief aid to 14,500 families affected by Tropical Storm Ramil.

DSWD spokesperson and Assistant Secretary Irene Dumlao said the initial aid consisted of 382 family food packs (FFPs) and 547 ready-to-eat-food (RTEF) boxes.

“Nagsimula na po tayong mamigay ng paunang relief aid sa mga apektadong pamilya ng Bagyong Ramil. Kaagapay po tayo ng mga local government units para makapagbigay ng agarang tulong at kapanatagan sa mga apektadong pamilya, na palaging bilin ng ating Pangulong Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., tuwing may sakuna,” she said in a statement on Sunday.

(We have begun distributing relief aid to families affected by Tropical Storm Ramil. We are working with local government units to deliver aid and assurance to the affected families, as ordered by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. especially in times of calamities.)

As of Sunday afternoon, the DSWD reported that Ramil has affected 14,500 families or 30,368 individuals from 147 barangays in Regions 2 (Cagayan Valley), 3 (Central Luzon), 5 (Bicol Region), and 6 (Western Visayas).

Of those affected, 3,028 families or 7,834 persons are temporarily staying in 131 evacuation centers across the four affected regions.

“Sa Bicol Region, kung saan nagkaroon ng suspension ng sea travel, agad pong nagpa-abot ang mga disaster response personnel natin ng RTEF sa mga locally stranded individuals. Mabilis rin tayong nakapamahagi dito sa Sorsogon, kung saan unang nag-landfall itong Bagyong Ramil,” Dumlao said.

(In the Bicol Region where sea travel was suspended, our disaster response personnel immediately delivered RTEF boxes to locally stranded individuals. We also immediately brought help to Sorsogon, where Ramil first made landfall.)

The DSWD is expecting more LGUs to request for augmentation support as the number of affected families is projected to increase once data consolidation is completed and Ramil exits the Philippine area of responsibility.

Dumlao assured that the DSWD is well-equipped to provide more aid if the need arises, as close to two million FFPs have been prepositioned across agency warehouses nationwide.

“Bagamat marami pong pinagkakaabalahan ang DSWD dahil na rin sa mga major earthquakes na nangyari at bagyo na sunod-sunod na nanalasa nitong nakaraan ay sapat po at tuloy-tuloy ang replenishment ng relief supplies natin and we are in solidarity with our President in ensuring that no Filipino would go hungry in times of disasters or emergencies,” she said.

(Even though the DSWD is preoccupied with recent major earthquakes and typhoons, our relief supplies are adequate and we are continuously conducting the replenishment of our relief supplies. And we are in solidarity with our President in ensuring that no Filipino would go hungry in times of disasters or emergencies.)

Dumlao added that the DSWD has more than P169 million in stand-by funds ready to be tapped for ongoing disaster response operations.

According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council’s 8 p.m. situation report, 20,041 persons or 6,602 families have been affected by Ramil, of which 11,966 individuals were displaced.

The NDRRMC recorded two deaths so far from Ramil’s onslaught. In Pitogo, Quezon, five members of a family were killed when a giant buli tree fell on their home at the height of the tropical storm’s wrath.

According to the state weather bureau’s 5 p.m. bulletin, the tropical storm is now over the West Philippine Sea, with its eye spotted 85 kilometers west northwest of Iba, Zambales. It is moving west northwestward at 35 kilometers per hour.

It is packing maximum sustained winds of 65 kilometers per hour near the center and with gustiness of up to 80 kilometers per hour.

Signal No. 2 is hoisted over six areas in Luzon while Signal No. 1 remains in effect in 29 ares in Luzon. — JMA, GMA Integrated News