US sends P70-M disaster aid to Davao
DISASTER-affected communities in Davao de Oro, Davao del Norte and Davao City in Mindanao received P70 million ($1.25 million) in humanitarian aid from the United States government on Monday, Feb. 12, 2024.
Reports said that between January 28 and February 2, extensive rainfall in Mindanao caused significant flooding and landslides, impacting nearly 1.2 million people with an estimated 795,000 people displaced and more than 97,600 people sheltering in 380 evacuation centers across Mindanao.
The US Embassy in Manila said this new funding through the US Agency for International Development (USAid) will provide emergency food, shelter, water, sanitation and essential hygiene items to support.
The embassy said USAid will partner with Catholic Relief Services and Action Against Hunger “to ensure this life-saving assistance reaches the most vulnerable groups, including single-parent households, persons with disabilities, pregnant and lactating women, the elderly, low-income families, and Indigenous Peoples.”
USAid also assisted the Office of Civil Defense in delivering 15,000 food packs of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) food packs to affected families with the assistance of the US Department of Defense’s III Marine Expeditionary Force (III MEF) in providing two C-130 planes.
Also last week, USAid partnered with the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development and the International Organization for Migration to provide emergency shelter for more than 5,000 affected persons.
USAid also supported the World Food Programme to transport DSWD food packs to 65,000 families.
The embassy said the US government issued a “Declaration of Humanitarian Need” on February 8 that will facilitate support for the Philippine government’s response efforts in Mindanao.
“We are proud to partner with the Philippine government to support the immediate needs of Mindanaoans in the areas hardest hit by the flooding and landslides,” said USAid Mission Director Ryan Washburn.
Washburn said this support will help ensure that food and other life-saving supplies reach communities most in need.
US Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Roger Turner, III MEF Support commanding general, said their support to their allies and partners, and their people in a time of need, is non-negotiable.
“Working in direct coordination with USAid and the Government of the Philippines, we stand ready to support those who need urgent assistance,” Turner said.
The embassy said USAid works year-round to help communities in the Philippines prepare for and be more resilient to natural disasters and that the US will continue to partner with the Philippine government to respond to natural disasters and support the people of the Philippines in their recovery efforts.
Meanwhile, the DSWD and the USAid supervised the loading of 2,400 family food packs (FFPs) into two US C-130 planes at the Villamor Airbase in Pasay City on Monday.
The boxes of FFPs to be carried by US aircraft are in addition to the 40,800 FFPs being transported to Davao Region by the Philippine Navy vessel BRP Davao del SurLD 602.
These FFPs will be provided to local government units (LGUs) in the Davao Region that were affected by a shear line in late January.
DSWD Secretary Rexlon “Rex” Gatchalian directed the ongoing distribution of relief aid to Mindanao in accordance with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s order to speed up the provision of assistance to the Davao Region.
Gatchalian also went to Davao de Oro on Sunday to check on the survivors of the landslide in Maco, which occurred on February 6.
“I was sent by the President to make sure that, one, the evacuees are well taken care of,” Gatchalian said.
“Second, we went to the hospital this morning to extend assistance to the victims who are hospitalized,” he added.
Gatchalian also expressed condolences to the families who lost loved ones in the said disaster.
The Maco landslide took place on Tuesday night near a gold mine site, burying houses, including two buses and a jeep that were scheduled to transport mining company employees.
Gatchalian later met with local officials to come up with more interventions for landslide victims in Maco’s four villages.
The Northeast Monsoon, also known as “amihan,” and the trough of a now-disappeared low pressure area caused floods and landslides in several Mindanao localities.