Taiwan earthquake affects about 5,000 Filipinos, no bid to repatriate them yet
A general view as workers carry out operations while on an elevated platform of a firefighting truck at the site where a building collapsed, following the earthquake, in Hualien, Taiwan April 4, 2024. | REUTERS
MANILA, Philippines — The Taiwan earthquake has affected about 5,000 Filipinos, said Hans Cacdac, Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) officer-in-charge, on Thursday.
1,400 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) are in Hualien country — the epicenter of the quake — while the rest are from the adjacent counties, said Cacdac in a press conference at the DMW Headquarters in Quezon City.
Cacdac also said they have yet to receive requests for repatriation.
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“They live in dorms provided to them; they live in factories in industrial zones, so they are well taken care of. So for that reason, at this stage, we have not received a repatriation request,” Cacdac said of the OFWs in Taiwan.
Three Filipinos — two female and a male — are also confirmed to have minor injuries, the official also said.
Two of them have since been discharged, while the other one is still confined.
Cacdac said: “One had a head injury from debris, it’s a minor head injury, was taken to hospital but discharged yesterday. The other one, she was in the course of evacuation, and was in a hurry so her hands were slammed in the door; she had swollen hands. Also hospitalized but discharged. The third one collapsed during the earthquake, probably due to stress. She is currently in hospital.”
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The injured Filipinos will receive action fund assistance and psychosocial counseling from the government, if needed, according to the DMW chief.
Cacdac also said some Filipino tourists were affected by the earthquake, but he could not yet provide their exact number or their current situation.
Nine people were killed while 800 people were hurt after a magnitude 7.6 earthquake hit Taiwan on Wednesday.
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