Catanduanes placed under state of calamity due to COVID-19

LEGAZPI CITY –– The island province of Catanduanes was placed under a state of calamity due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on Tuesday.

Jerry Beo, head of Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, said the local government would prioritize relief goods distribution to help poor families, especially the tricycle drivers, farmers, laborers, fishermen, and other ordinary workers, who lost their sources of income.

“They will be starving with the lockdown,” he said.

Beo said the province was also facing a problem with the purchasing of protective equipment for the frontline responders.

“Despite having a budget, we have difficulty in buying personal protective equipment,” he added./lzb