MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police (PNP) will provide P2.78 million cash assistance to all 278 police officers affected by the phreatic or steam-driven eruption of the Taal Volcano.
“On the part of the PNP, we are releasing at least P10,000 for every policeman affected, so that’s around P2.78 million which we will be releasing to the regional director para naman makatulong sa mga pulis na apektado (so that we can help our affected personnel),” PNP officer-in-charge Lt. Gen. Archie Gamboa said in an interview with reporters.
Aside from this amount, the PNP will also donate cash to civilian victims in Calabarzon, particularly in Batangas, which will come from the P10 donation of each of the 190,000 personnel of the agency.
He said that the amount from the voluntary contribution has already reached P2.5 million.
According to Gamboa, Calabarzon police director Brig. Gen. Vicente Danao Jr. said the police officers affected by the eruption may opt not to report for duty so they can better look after their families.
He said the PNP headquarters is ready to deploy personnel to the region in the absence of their affected colleagues.
N95 face masks, goggles, and raincoats were also distributed to police officers conducting rescue efforts, said Gamboa.
There were no incidents of looting and other related crime incidents in the region related to the effects of the volcanic activity, said Gamboa.
The PNP was placed on full alert status to ensure the availability of all police officers for rescue operations in Calabarzon.