ILOILO CITY – The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has released P10.4 million in aid to victims of severe tropical storm ‘’Paeng’’ in Western Visayas.
Atty. Carmelo Nochete, DSWD-6 director, said that they have distributed 18,379 family food packs and non-food items such as hygiene, sleeping, and kitchen kits in Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, Iloilo, and Negros Occidental.
There are more than 14,600 families still in evacuation centers in 881 barangays in Western Visayas.
The Western Visayas Regional Risk Reduction and Management Council (Western Visayas RDRRMC), has recorded almost 559,000 persons or 146,000 families displaced by flooding and landslides.
Nochete has requested an additional 50,000 family food packs from the Visayas Disaster Resource Center in Cebu City for augmentation.
“Packing of goods is also ongoing to ensure a steady supply of goods to respond fast to the affected families,” Nochete added.
Atty. May Rago-Castillo, DSWD-6 chief information officer, said priority recipients of food packs are those in evacuation centers.