DSWD: More than 900,000 persons affected by Typhoon ‘Nina’

Evacuation from Typhoon “Nina” in the Bicol Region: The typhoon has caused havoc not only in Bicol but parts of the Calabarzon and Southern Tagalog as well. AFP

More than 900,000 persons or some 200,000 families were affected by Typhoon “Nina,” the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) reported on Thursday.

Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo said that as of 2 a.m. on Thursday, the Disaster Response and Management Bureau recorded 923,485 persons or 206,812 families in 813 barangays affected by the typhoon.

Taguiwalo said the province of Albay in the Bicol region was the hardest hit by the typhoon.

“Sa Albay ho ang pinakamarami na nasalanta (Albay was the most devastated), 240 barangays, 100,000 families,” Taguiwalo said at a press briefing in Malacañang.

She said 504 barangays in Bicol were affected by the typhoon, with half of that number in Albay, 153 in Camarines Sur, which had 27,919 families, and 69 in Catanduanes, which had 21,906 families.

In Mimaropa, she said 5,015 families in 80 barangays were hit by the typhoon, with Marinduque recording the most number of affected families at 2,000, while 4,245 more families in 161 barangays were also affected in Calabarzon.

“Nakapagpalabas na ho tayo ng P47,298,500 na assistance in the form of mga relief goods. Malaking bahagi ho ‘yan ay galing sa DSWD. May maliit na bahagi na galing sa mga LGUs (We have released P47,298,500 assistance in the form of relief goods. A big part of that came from the DSWD and a smaller amount came from the local government units),” Taguiwalo said.

The secretary also said they were preparing the guidelines for the P1-billion fund that the President had allocated for social services nationwide.

The money had not yet been released to her department but Taguiwalo said the DSWD could start providing assistance using its own funds.

“Nililinaw lang ho natin na hindi ho pera ang ibibigay ng department. Dadalin ang reseta mula sa doktor … bagong reseta, iva-validate natin iyan at bibigyan natin ng guarantee letter sa iba’t ibang mga botika. So hindi ho pera (We’d like to clarify that the department is not giving away assistance in the form of cash. The affected residents should bring their doctor’s prescriptions, we’ll validate them, and give them a guarantee letter to use in drug stores. We’re not giving away money),” she said.

She said a memorandum of understanding with hospitals was also being crafted to accommodate indigent patients, which she hopes to have implemented by next year.

“We are implementing it immediately, meaning, if there’s an indigent who has a valid prescription, we find ways to provide that assistance from our existing funds. But the actual P1 billion have not been downloaded to us,” the secretary said./rga