The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has reported that 16, 935 families or 84,458 individuals are still staying in various evacuation centers in the provinces of Iloilo and Negros Occidental as of Jan. 3, 2022.

The latest report submitted to the Office of the Civil Defense (OCD) on Tuesday afternoon showed that one family is from Iloilo province and the rest of the evacuees are from Negros Occidental that was devastated by Typhoon Odette.

In an interview Tuesday, DSWD Disaster Response Management Division (DRMD) information officer Therese Fely Legaste said the department has released PHP37.066 million worth of assistance to the typhoon victims.

Relief goods distributed included 67, 277 family food packs that were augmented to requesting local government units (LGUs), 1,400 pieces of non-food items such as sleeping and hygiene kits for those still staying in evacuation centers, and 6,621 bottled waters.

Part of the support was the assistance to 36 individuals in crisis situations, either as burial or medical aid amounting to PHP438,000.

The LGUs are in charge of distributing the assistance, giving priority to families in evacuation centers and those displaced victims staying with their relatives.

The bulk of the assistance, around PHP20 million, was sent to hard-hit Negros Occidental Province and Bacolod City.

“Most of those who availed of bottled water and non-food items are displaced families from Negros Occidental, particularly Candoni, Ilog, Kabankalan and Sipalay,” Legaste added.

Apart from Negros Occidental, DSWD also sent 7, 324 family food packs to Antique; 2,944 to Aklan; 4, 610 to Capiz; 2, 800 to Guimaras; 12,537 to Iloilo province, 112 to Iloilo City; and 1,900 food packs to Bacolod City.

As of 5 p.m. of January 3, DSWD has 23,470 ready food packs in various pre-position sites in Capiz and Iloilo Province.

“In case we have big requests, especially coming from Negros Occidental we also have augmentation from the central office,” she added.

The food packs being sent to Negros Occidental are being sourced from the central office and from the warehouses and preposition sites of Dumarao, Capiz, and Iloilo towns of Carles and San Rafael since those prepositioned on Bago, Negros Occidental were already distributed.

Legaste said they are waiting for the directive from their central office if financial assistance will be extended to those whose houses were damaged by the typhoon.

Of the 264,321 damaged houses, some 54,355 are destroyed and the rest were damaged. (PNA)