PASAY CITY, Oct. 18 -- As typhoon Lando continues to hit Luzon Island, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) continues to assist local government units (LGUs) in responding to the needs of affected families, especially in relief operations and in evacuating families from low lying and coastal areas.
As of 6 a.m. today, a total of 3,552 families or 14,314 persons from Regions I, II,III, and the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) have been affected, of whom 3,315 families or 13,016 persons are inside 108 evacuation centers managed by LGUs. The evacuees are being provided with family food packs and hot meals.
Likewise, some 277 families or 1,406 persons are outside evacuation centers and are also being provided with relief supplies. DSWD Secretary Corazon Juliano-Soliman said that evacuation of families in low-lying and coastal areas continues as the typhoon is expected to linger in the country. She appealed to families in danger zones to follow the orders of their local authorities to ensure zero casualty. As of press time, a total of 187,525 family food packs are available in 96 municipalities of 17 provinces in the four affected regions.
In Region III, where Lando made landfall in Casiguran, Aurora at 2 a.m., the DSWD-Field Office has requested the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) to provide four military trucks to transport 3,000 family food packs today to augment the resources of the province. Transport of the family food packs will depend on the weather and the condition of roads.
Likewise, some 200 and 1,000 family food packs will be delivered to Bataan and Zambales, respectively.
DSWD-Field Offices in affected regions continue to repack relief supplies.
In this morning’s press briefing at the office of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), it was reported that LGUs together with concerned government agencies are now conducting clearing operations on roads and fixing communication lines.
To date, there are more than 5,000 stranded passengers in various ports around the country. They are being assisted by LGUs and DSWD disaster teams.
DSWD disaster teams continue to remain on red alert to monitor the situation and to assist LGUs. (DSWD)