BATANGAS, Philippines — National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) acting chief Brig. Gen. Debold Sinas ordered Metro Manila police chiefs to monitor and assist victims of the Taal Volcano eruption in Batamgas who have now taken refuge in the metropolis.
“In-alert ko na lahat ng chiefs of police natin na i-monitor ang taga-Batangas na nagpuntang NCR tignan kung ano ma-assist sa kanila din,” Sinas told reporters at the General Malvar Memorial School, in Santo Tomas town in Batangas.
[I have alerted all our chiefs of police in the NCR to monitor the Batangas evacuees who are now in Metro Manila and offer what we can to assist.]
As a form of monitoring, Sinas said law enforcers will ask the names and needs of the Batangas residents who have evacuated to Metro Manila. Sinas said police officers are also instructed to stay alert for criminals pretending to be evacuees from Batangas.
“Minomonitor lang at binibilang siyempre… Mahirap na rin malusutan tayo na hindi totoong evacuees ,” he said.
[We will monitor them and count the number of evacuees. Of course, we can’t allow ourselves to be victimized by those who are pretending to become evacuees.]
Sinas said the Batangas police have not recorded any evacuees going to Metro Manila but some victims might have gone to Metro Manila to live with their relatives.
“Sa ngayon, wala pa report yung chiefs of police na evacuees na pumunta ng Metro Manila. Ang observation namin yung iba pumupunta sa kamag-anak,” the Metro Manila police acting chief said.
[For now, chiefs of police in Metro Manila have no record of evacuees going to Metro Manila. But from what we observed, some are going to their relatives.]
Reports from the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said the eruption of Taal Volcano has eased up but cautioned the public to not expect that “the worst is over.”
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council earlier reported that around 40,000 evacuees are taking refuge at evacuation centers following the eruption of Taal Volcano.