Philippine National Police (PNP) chief General Guillermo Eleazar. Senate PRIB file photo / Joseph Vidal
MANILA, Philippines — Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Guillermo Eleazar on Monday tasked the Medical Reserve Force (MRF) to assist the COVID-19 situation in Batangas amid the continuous activity of the Taal Volcano.
“Subalit gaano man katatag ay maaring bumigay din kung hindi natin tutukuran ng suporta.(But no matter how strong we are, we can also give up if we cannot provide the full support.) That is why I ordered our Medical Reserve Force to be ready for possible deployment to Batangas to assist in attending to the medical needs of the evacuees,” Eleazar said in a statement.
“Sa ngayon ay nangangalap din kami ng tulong na maipapaabot sa ating mga kababayan na naapektuhan ng pag-aalburoto ng Taal Volcano at makakaasa ang ating mga kababayan doon ng ating patuloy na suporta sa mga sususunod na araw at habang wala pang katiyakan ang sitwasyon doon,” he added.
(Today we are also gathering all the help we can give to the people affected by the Taal Volcano. We assure you that the people in Batangas will continue to receive the support in the coming days despite the uncertainty of the situation.)
According to Eleazar, Batangas Governor Hermilando Mandanas mentioned that hospitals in the city are in full-capacity of COVID-19 patients, including those people with other illnesses.
On Sunday, Eleazar visited some of the evacuation areas in the municipalities of Agoncillo and Laurel to check on the condition of the evacuees as well as assess the security and other needs of those affected by the Taal Volcano unrest.
READ: Thousands of residents evacuate amid Taal Volcano unrest
“Doble ang trahedya na kinakaharap ng ating mga kababayan sa Batangas at ako ay humahanga sa katatagan na ipinapakita nila at ng kanilang LGUs sa pagtugon dito gaya ng nakita ko sa pagbisita ko kahapon,” said Eleazar.
(The tragedy of the people from Batangas have doubled and I admire their resilience they have shown and as well as the response of the local government units when I visited them yesterday)
He also ordered the police officers to secure and enforce minimum public health protocols in the evacuation facilities to avoid the spread of the virus.
Along with that, Eleazar also strictly enforced several police checkpoints to prevent residents from going back to their residences that are part of the Permanent Danger Zone and including other restricted areas as well.
As of Monday, Taal Volcano was still on Alert Level 3, indicating magmatic unrest. The volcano also emitted 22,628 tons of sulfur. The volcano also emitted 22,628 tons of sulfur dioxide last July 4 based on the latest advisory of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology. — Sofia Vertucio, trainee
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