LEGAZPI CITY, Albay – Two mining companies operating in Aroroy town in Masbate province have donated family emergency kits worth P2.2 million to residents of Albay affected by the Mayon Volcano unrest.
Filminera Resources Corp. and Philippine Gold Processing and Refining Corp. distributed these kits to evacuees at the Matanag, Mabinit, and Bonga evacuation centers in Legazpi City, Gabawan Evacuation Center in Daraga, and Comun Elementary School in Camalig.
Each kit contains solar lights, household water filtration system with two water buckets with lids, spigot, sponge, and filter, and hygiene kits with soap, toothbrush, and toothpaste.
The Tabang Bicol Relief Operations in Camalig, a joint project of Filminera, Philippine Gold, Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB), and the local government of Camalig, also distributed food buckets and family emergency kits worth a total of P500,000 to families in Barangays Anoling, Taladong, Cumon, and Bungkaras.
"This brings the total donation of Filminera, Philippine Gold, and GlobalMedic to calamity-stricken areas to P6.8 million since the start of their partnership in 2021. Earlier this year, the firms donated fire-fighting gears and 1,584 family emergency kits to fire departments in Manila, Masbate, and Leyte worth P3.2 million. During typhoon ‘Rolly’ in 2021 and typhoon ‘Odette’ in 2022, they have also given emergency kits worth P1.4 million to typhoon victims," Filminera said.
Through the two firms’ partnership with GlobalMedic, a humanitarian aid organization based in Ontario, Canada, more than 2,000 families in Legazpi, Daraga, and other municipalities in Albay have received family emergency kits.
Filminera, Philippine Gold, and GlobalMedic have been giving aid to calamity-stricken communities since 2021.
Filminera holds the mining tenements in the Masbate gold project site while Philippine Gold operates the processing plant.
Philippine Gold is fully owned by B2Gold Corp., one of the world’s largest gold producers with headquarters in Vancouver, Canada.
B2Gold Corp. operates gold mines and numerous development and exploration projects in various countries, including Mali, the Philippines, Namibia, Canada, Colombia, Finland, and Uzbekistan.
This most recent donation of family emergency kits from GlobalMedic arrived in May from Ontario and were turned over to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)-Bicol, Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) in Masbate, Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO) in Aroroy, and Philippine Society of Mining Engineers Inc. (PSEM) Albay-Legazpi Chapter.