QUEZON CITY, Philippines – Although Typhoon Jose is unlikely to make a landfall in the country, the Philippine government through the Field Offices of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) near the typhoon path are still on alert status to monitor the situation and to ensure quick provision of augmentation assistance to local government units when necessary.
DSWD assured that prepositioned relief goods are enough in those areas.
In Ilocos Region, DSWD has prepositioned family food packs worth P1,564,763.60 and non-food items worth P6,082,767.93.
The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Regional Center 1 together with the Regional/Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Councils (R/PDRRMC) in Pangasinan is monitoring the situation in low lying areas. Pre-emptive evacuation of families will be undertaken to minimize casualties.
In Cagayan Valley, DSWD-Field Office II prepositioned a total of 13,000 family food packs for the 65 evacuation centers identified. Likewise, the provincial governments of Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino, and Batanes prepositioned 20,325 family food packs.
In addition, it has available standby fund of P5.18 million with 3,660 family food packs, 314 cases of assorted canned goods, 987 cases of bottled water, and 36,000 tins of ready-to-eat-food that are available for distribution as the need arises.
