Over 1,300 residents affected by the May 11 landslide in the Surigao del Norte towns of Mainit and Tubod received interventions from the government on Sunday.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development in the Caraga Region (DSWD-13) said around 266 affected families in Barangay Siana, Mainit, were provided immediate assistance, such as food and other needs, during the daylong activity.
“Each of the affected residents who sought refuge in the town’s evacuation center received three family food packs, a sleeping kit, a hygiene kit, and a kitchen kit,” the DSWD-13 said in a report Monday.
“The DSWD, through our Field Office (FO) Caraga, was able to distribute over PHP2 million worth of food and non-food items (FNIs) to the affected families. These include family food packs (FFPs), hygiene kits, sleeping kits, kitchen kits , and family kits,” Assistant Secretary for Disaster Response and Management Group (DRMG) Irene Dumlao said in a news release on Monday.
Aside from providing immediate relief aid, Dumlao reported that DSWD FO Caraga has also conducted an assessment of the 266 landslide-hit families in coordination with the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) on May 12.
Some 241 families, or 952 persons, are currently staying in four evacuation centers in the municipalities of Mainit and Tubod, Surigao del Norte, while 25 families, or 81 individuals, opted to temporarily stay with their relatives or friends.
At least 25 houses were destroyed, but no fatalities were recorded during the incident.
The landslide occurred after the Tailings Storage Facility 3 embankment of Greenstone Mining Corporation failed and collapsed.
In a statement issued following the incident, the mining firm said the sudden failure of their facility was caused by a series of earthquakes that hit the area that day, with the strongest at magnitude 4.0 in Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur.
Personnel from the Surigao del Norte provincial government rushed to the area after the incident for evacuation operations and provision of initial food assistance to the victims.
Investigation by authorities is still ongoing concerning the failure of the said facility. The Office of Civil Defense and the provincial government are leading the damage assessment in the area. (PNA)
