The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has extended help to families displaced by the fire May 24 fire at Sitio 6, Barangay Catmon, Malabon.
“Aside from the immediate assistance provided to the victims, the Department, through our Field Office NCR, will continuously coordinate with the Malabon City Social Welfare and Development Office for the provision of further assistance and intervention to the displaced residents,” Acting Secretary Virginia Orogo said on Friday, in a statement on DSWD’s website.
As of Friday, DSWD has provided a total of P613,810 worth of assistance to residents staying in temporary shelters, which included food packs, mats, mosquito nets, and blankets.
According to DSWD’s Disaster Response Management Bureau (DRMB), the fire destroyed 450 homes, affecting 1,200 families or 4,500 individuals.
Several families have opted to stay at the Catmon People’s Park while others sought shelter at the Catmon’s tennis, volleyball, and covered courts.
In a previous report, Malabon fire officials said that the fire, which started at the roof of a certain Leonila Cortez, spread quickly as the houses were made of light materials. Initial investigation placed the damages at least P4.5 million.
After the incident, the local government unit of Malabon placed the whole barangay of Catmon in a state of calamity. /vvp
READ: Malabon neighborhood put under state of calamity as fire displaced 1,000 families