LOS BAÑOS, LAGUNA, Philippines?Hoping to reach far-flung communities that were devastated by Tropical Storm ?Ondoy,? volunteers of the Serve the People Corps (STPC) walked through landslides and swollen rivers in Tanay, Rizal, Friday to reach Barangay Cayabu.

Hearing reports that 200 families were hit by flooding in the area, 69 volunteers belonging to the group carried sacks with at least 200 packs of relief goods to be the first to provide help to the remote village.

Among the families in the community are members of indigenous people Dumagats.

Ben Villeno, Bayan Muna-Southern Tagalog coordinator and a convenor of the STPC, said the group was determined to reach these communities, especially the indigenous people in Rizal, because no help has arrived for them yet. ?This is only the first of a series of relief missions we will hold in Tanay,? he said. ?Next time we hope to reach more of the Dumagats.?

He said that at least 1,610 families in seven far-flung villages of Tanay were devastated by Tropical Storm Ondoy, based on reports that the group has gathered from its members.

?These communities have long been victims of government neglect because they are in the mountains,? he said.

?These are also the same communities that would be affected by the Laiban Dam project, which will soon be underway,? he added.

On Oct. 16, peasant and indigenous people?s groups will hold a solidarity mission in these communities to provide relief goods and help the people get back on their feet from the devastation wrought by Ondoy, according to Tony Calbayog, Bigkis at Lakas ng mga Katutubo sa Timog Katagalugan chair.

Several youth groups in Los Baños have earlier revived a relief group that was active in the 1990s to help victims of Ondoy in Laguna.

In minutes, members of the group were able to gather and collect goods for distribution to those in need. Clarice Colting-Pulumbarit, Inquirer Southern Luzon