Sawang Calero fire survivors allowed to rebuild homes
The owners of close to 150 structures that were razed by fire in Barangay Sawang Calero, Cebu City can rebuild their houses, an official said.
A fire in Sitio Nipaan last Thursday destroyed 145 houses and displaced close to 400 families or about 1,500 residents.
Genevieve Alcoseba, Division for the Welfare of the Urban Poor (DWUP) assistant head, said around 130 of the gutted houses were on the slum improvement resettlement (SIR) area.
This would mean that as long as they are the registered recipients of the SIR program, they can rebuild their houses on their original lots. Each SIR recipient is entitled to around 20 to 30 square meters.
However, to ensure that the same incident does not happen again, DWUP will re-block the area and allocate a setback of .5 meters for pathways.
“We’re going to restore the pathways to address the issue on encroachment,” Alcoseba said.
Alcoseba encouraged the fire survivors to voluntarily demolish their destroyed houses to help the City Government fast-track the re-blocking and clearing of debris.
Around 15 structures, on the other hand, are built on a private lot. Alcoseba said they have yet to discuss the matter with the private lot owner.
DWUP will start reblocking the area on Wednesday. /