Negros Occidental’s Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (PDRRMC) recommended yesterday the declaration of a state of calamity in the entire province after the eruption of Mt. Kanlaon on December 9 that displaced thousands of Negrenses, mainly in central and southern Negros.
In a meeting held at the Capitol Social Hall in Bacolod City, the PDRRMC, chaired by Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson, passed a resolution for the action, which was then endorsed to the Provincial Board for approval during a special session.
“The PDRRMC agreed to pass a resolution declaring the entire province under a state of calamity. With this, we will be able to tap our quick response fund [QRF]. Every local government unit [LGU] willing to help can tap their QRF. They would like to help those affected LGUs,” Lacson said in an interview.
Mt. Kanlaon is under Alert Level 3 (magmatic unrest), which “means a magmatic eruption has begun that may progress to further explosive eruptions,” based on the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) classification.
Phivolcs Director Teresito Bacolcol and Office of Civil Defense 6 (Western Visayas) Director Raul Fernandez, who is Task Force Kanlaon commander, joined the PDRRMC meeting after conducting an aerial survey of Mt. Kanlaon yesterday.
Based on the data of the PDRRMC, the eruption affected the cities of Bago and La Carlota, as well as the municipalities of La Castellana, Moises Padilla, Pontevedra, Valladolid, San Enrique, Hinigaran, and Binalbagan.
There are 33,806 individuals affected within the six-kilometer radius, supported by the province’s contingency plan.
“Due to forced evacuation mandated by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, these individuals are unable to remain in their homes. They face not only respiratory health problems resulting from ash fall, but also the hazards associated with contaminated food and water resources,” the PDRRMC said.
Data from the regional social welfare office showed that as of Wednesday night, December 11, 4,963 families, comprising 16,869 persons, have been affected by the latest volcanic eruption in the cities of Bago and La Carlota, and the municipalities of La Castellana, Moises Padilla, Murcia, and Pontevedra.
About 3,767 families, or 12,515 persons, are in 22 evacuation centers, mostly in the hardest-hit La Castellana. (PNA)