BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY. Residents of Daanbantayan town troop to an evacuation center with their belongings while it’s still clear weather. (CDN PHOTO/ TONEE DESPOJO)
Daanbantayan – Neighbors in this northern Cebu town are opening their homes to evacuees.
At least 463 families started hosting evacuees from areas at risk of storm surges caused by supertyphoon Ruby.
Daanbantayan Mayor Augusto Corro said they encouraged residents who live far from the coast to accept those who can’t be accommodated in government evacuation centers.
Ruby started making its presence felt yesterday morning with dark, overcast skies and howling winds that made trees sway back and forth.
Light to moderate rains lasted the whole afternoon.
As early as Thursday, Vina Caliza and her husband, American national Norman Hendrickson, started accepting outsiders in their house in sitio Cogon Uno in barangay Agujo.
Their semi-concrete, bungalow house has three bedrooms and now houses 20 persons, including the Calizas and the three families who moved in the place.
Caliza said she doesn’t mind the extra company. They plan to accept more people in need of safer shelter.
“We will accept anyone regardless if we’re packed here like sardines, as long as we’re all safe,” the 22-year-old Caliza said.
Close to 4,100 families are staying in the town’s 67 public schools and gyms, with more people expected to come.
The town’s social welfare officer Heidie Aplece said a single classroom can only accommodate five to six families but with the number of evacuees, 10 to 12 families stayed in one room.
“Last year, we used the town hall and the sports complex but now, it was not included in the evacuation centers because these are in danger zones. That could’ve helped ease the congestion,” she said.
Out of the town’s 20 barangays, 15 are coastal communities, two are island barangays (Malapascua and Carnaza) while the remaining three are located in the mainland.
Outsiders
Aplece said the “household evacuation” scheme was planned a few months ago when the town drafted its disaster preparedness plan.
Corro and the town’s disaster management team designated the Daanbantayan National High School as their command center, as well as its biggest evacuation center.
Each family was given packs of canned food, noodles, water, and six kilos of rice which are expected to last three days on average.
In San Remigio town, northern Cebu, Mayor Mariano Martinez said more than 3,000 persons from 13 barangays were evacuated as of yesterday morning. Martinez said the remaining 14 barangays have not been accounted for yet.
“We have over 100 evacuation centers. We don’t want to squeeze everyone inside. If the families can be accommodated in a house or any strong structure, they should stay there,” the mayor said.
Martinez said they spent more than P1 million on food, medicine, and water for their evacuees. /With a report from Victor Anthony Silva