Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Judy M. Taguiwalo today shared information that she and the DSWD-Field Office IV-A headed by Regional Director Letty Diokno were able to secure in the last two days regarding the fire at the HTI compound inside the export processing Zone in General Trias, Cavite.

“We continue to monitor the situation of the workers affected by the fire at the HTI, and to offer our assistance to their families. We are grateful to hear that the local government units (LGUs) are also focused on the situation and continue to give assistance,” Sec. Taguiwalo said.

Sec. Taguiwalo spoke with Dr. Jonathan Lau and Dr. Ismael Mercado of the Divine Mercy Hospital in General Trias, Cavite when she went to the hospital last night. A number of workers were confined in the hospital.

As of 7:30pm of February 3,  there were only 27 patients from the HTI fire who are in the hospital. From the more than 70 victims who were rushed there immediately after the fire erupted, three were taken to the ICU, two were in severe condition; and the rest were recuperating after suffering from medium to minor burns.

As of 4pm today, 17 families of patients at the Divine Grace Medical Center received financial assistance as follow: 10 families received P3,000 each; seven families received P5,000 each, with a total of P65,000 in all.

Assessment of families of 10 more confined patients will continue upon arrival of family members for interview.

Other survivors were rushed to the General Trias Maternity and Pediatric Hospital, and according to DSWD IV-A officials and employees, as of 7:30pm last night, there were only 13 remaining patients  there.

According to Dr. Mercado, workers who escaped or were rescued from the fire were immediately taken to the emergency rooms to be operated on or treated for their injuries. Many were injured not directly because of the fire but because they broke glass windows to escape. They fell and hurt themselves as they rushed out of exits and doorways, or they got injured after jumping out of the windows.

A representative of the HTI has been at the hospital checking the status of the workers/patients from the very beginning. The company has promised to shoulder all the hospital expenses.

A representative of the Office of Cavite Governor Jesus Crispin Remulla has also been within close communication with the hospital officials to monitor the needs of the patients.

No one has been declared dead from among the workers who were taken to the hospital.

“It was alarming that as of 8:30pm of Feb. 2, the HTI Ground Zero continues to release smoke. A helicopter was seen circling the area, and members of the media who were on site said that they were waiting for clean-up and clearing operations to commence as soon as the site is declared safe. We express our sympathies for the families of the workers who have yet to be declared safe and confirmed not missing in the fire. We are prepared to provide psycho-social therapy for those who may need it to cope with the stress of waiting for news,” she said.

Building is not yet declared fire out so that no confirmation yet as to casualties trapped inside.

The number of workers who have migrated from other provinces such as Pampanga is also being determined.

Direct assistance to fire survivors, families

As of February 3, DSWD Field Office IV-A has provided assistance to the fire survivors. Thirteen patients from General Trias Maternity and Pediatric Hospital were extended financial assistance through their families as follows: eight clients were given P3,000 each; one client was given P4,000; another four clients were provided with P5,000 each. The assistance provided depended on the immediate needs stated by the families in interviews with assisting social workers.

A total of P48,000 worth of assistance has been provided as of Thursday night.

As of press time, members of the DSWD IV-A team are posted at Divine Grace Medical Center to provide financial assistance to families of patients assessed last night.

Also yesterday, 21 families of patients were provided with ready-to-eat packs of arroz caldo, with the number of packs released totaling 155.

In the meantime, social workers from Gen. Trias are also doing their own assessment for additional financial assistance to families already assisted by DSWD.

DSWD FO IV-A will provide information  on victims trapped inside the HTI building once it gets  confirmation from the team of LGU-PNP-SOCO.

“The problem that needs to be addressed, however, is who will pay for the expenses of the family members of the injured as they watch over their hospitalized loved ones. There is also the question of who will give financial support to the families of the injured workers – especially in the case of families wherein the breadwinner is the injured worker.  DSWD IV-A  is already in the process of determining the marital and family status of the injured/hospitalized workers.  What is conclusive is that majority of them – as with the case of the rest of the workers of HTI – are between 20 to 30 years old. We wish the local government officials of General Trias and the rest of Cavite godspeed in their continuing efforts to help the survivors and their families, and we assure them that the DSWD will assist in these efforts in all the ways that we can,”  Sec. Taguiwalo said. ###