Some 1,600 families stood as beneficiaries of the Office of the Vice President (OVP), which distributed relief boxes to those affected by the massive flooding in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
Office of the Vice President's relief operations in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Photo courtesy of OVP)
In a statement on Tuesday, July 16, the OVP said its Disaster Operations Center (DOC) led the disaster response activities and coordinated closely with local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Councils (DRRMC).
It made use of its BARMM Satellite Office to give aid to some 1,000 families in the designated evacuation center in Matanog, Maguindanao del Norte.
“Each relief box contained hygiene kits, blankets, sleeping mats, mosquito nets (kulambo), slippers, expandable water jugs, and other needed necessities,” Vice President Sara Duterte’s office said.
In Balabagan, Lanao del Sur, the OVP handed out relief aid to around 600 flood-hit families.
The combined effects of the southwest monsoon (habagat) and the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) on July 9 brought heavy rains and caused flash floods in Malabang and Balabagan in Lanao del Sur and Matanog in Maguindanao del Norte.
Flooding was also reported in several municipalities in the Special Geographic Area (SGA), Maguindanao del Sur, and Basilan.
Red alert was already raised in BARMM, where eight people died due to the flood.