Marikina sends tents to quake-hit Cotabato

MARIKINA, Philippines — Shoes aren’t the only thing Marikina City is exporting these days.

The local government of the notoriously flood-prone city shipped 100 modular tents over the weekend to Cotabato City, which had been reeling from a 6.5-magnitude earthquake that struck on Thursday, leaving thousands of families without shelter.

The tents, capable of housing at least seven people and designed to maximize privacy, made a splash when the city rolled them out in 2018 amid the deluge brought by that year’s “habagat” or southwest monsoon-induced rains.

Amid reports of dire conditions at evacuation centers in Mindanao, however, it seems Marikina’s success with the tents has yet to be replicated in other areas vulnerable to disasters.

Makeshift shelters

“After learning what happened to Cotabato, I ordered my staff to prepare 100 of our tents to give to Cotabato,” said Mayor Marcelino Teodoro, who added that the makeshift shelters would provide families “privacy while staying at their designated evacuation sites.”

While the 3-meter tents have an open roof to allow for airflow, all its four sides are covered, giving occupants the impression of sleeping in a room on top of shielding them from other people’s eyes.

Without overcrowding, the city’s donation would be capable of accommodating up to 700 people. It remained to be seen, however, if this would prevent, or even slow down, the deterioration of humanitarian conditions in the quake-stricken areas of Mindanao.

Reports that surfaced on Sunday included that of women who were digging a hole at a Davao del Sur evacuation site to be used as a makeshift toilet for 200 families. Basic toiletries such as soap were also severely lacking, according to evacuees.