DSWD Sec. Judy Taguiwalo (right in red vest) , Assistant Secretary Jose Antonio Hernandez (right), DREAMB Director Felino O. Castro V (left) and DSWD CO and FO IV-A staff confer with the PSWDO of Lucena, Quezon and Southern Luzon Command during the first leg of the MIMAROPA and CALABARZON monitoring of the post Typhoon Nina situation in Lucena City.

There is no holiday for Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)Secretary Judy M. Taguiwalo, who together with a team from DSWD Central Office, traveled this morning to the areas severely hit by Typhoon Nina in CALABARZON, MIMAROPA, and Marinduque.

Sec. Taguiwalo and other officials left at 8.30 this morning and proceeded to Lucena, Quezon where they attended a briefing on the damages inflicted by ‘Nina’ in the region. The team will also proceed to Marinduque after the meeting.

The team joined the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), which will conduct an aerial assessment of the affected areas in Batangas, Quezon, and Marinduque provinces.

Present during the briefing were LGU officials led by the Provincial Social Welfare Development Officer (PSWDO) of Quezon and the Southern Luzon Command.

The Department is also providing additional family food packs (FFPs) to the provinces of Quezon and Marinduque.

Based on the 6 am report of the DSWD Disaster Response Operations Monitoring and Information Center (DROMIC), the typhoon has affected a total of 326,632 families or 1,501,275 persons in 1, 370 barangays in Regions CALABARZON, MIMAROPA, V and VIII.

To date, a total of 246,586 families or 1,151,892 persons from Regions CALABARZON, MIMAROPA, V, and VIII have been displaced of which, 68,304 families or 316,714 persons are currently staying in 657 evacuation centers.

To date, a total of ₱92,618,506 worth of relief assistance has been provided to affected families and stranded passengers in Regions CALABARZON, MIMAROPA and V. Of the said amount, the Department provided ₱ 90,063,535 while the LGUs provided a total of ₱2,554,972.

The Department maintains its close coordination with its concerned field offices (FOs) to augment additional resources when needed.
Sec. Taguiwalo stated “Kahit na holiday ngayon, December 30, patuloy pa din ang DSWD sa pagmomonitor ng sitwasyon ng mga naapektuhan ng bagyong Nina. Pinipilit naming maiparating ang tulong sa mga nasalantang lugar sa lalong madaling panahon (Even during the holidays, DSWD continues to monitor the situation of those affected by Typhoon Nina. We are trying our best to deliver the relief goods to the devastated areas as soon as possible).”

The DSWD chief also clarified, “Bago pa man tumama ang Typhoon Nina sa Marinduque, may prepositioned supplies na sa mga LGU. Hindi po namin alam bakit madaming nagsasabi na kahit isang family food pack ng DSWD ay wala sa Marinduque (Even before Typhoon Nina struck Marinduque, there are already prepositioned supplies in the LGU. We do not know why several people are saying that not even a single food pack from DSWD arrived in Marinduque).”

“In any case, DSWD already sent additional augmentation to Marinduque last December 28 which included 5,000 FFPs, 2000 blankets, 2000 sleeping mats, 200 mosquito nets, 500 solar lamps, and 2,000 hygiene kits,” the Secretary ended. ###