Marcos allots P130 million for Kanlaon relief efforts

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines — President Marcos has allocated P130 million in additional funds for the relief operations following the eruption of Kanlaon Volcano on Dec. 9.

Raul Fernandez, Office of Civil Defense director for Western Visayas, said the President earmarked P70 million in Quick Response Fund for the OCD.

Marcos also allotted P30 million for Canlaon City and another P30 million for the Negros Oriental provincial government for their Kanlaon eruption response works.

Local governments around the volcano earlier sought for help in augmenting their depleted disaster funds.

According to Fernandez, the requests for additional funds were facilitated by Sec. Antonio Lagdameo Jr., the President’s special assistant.

He added that Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro also asked for more relief funds, aside from the P70 million already earmarked for the OCD.

More than 24,000 residents of La Castellana, Murcia, Pontevedra and Moises Padilla towns and San Carlos, Bago and La Carlota cities – all in Negros Occidental – and Canlaon City in Negros Oriental, are staying at designated evacuation centers.

Fernandez said the evacuees are likely to welcome the New Year in the facilities as the OCD waits for an advice from the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).

“After three weeks, should Phivolcs downgrade the alert level, we will allow the evacuees to return to their respective homes,” Fernandez said.

A total of 14 localities in Negros may be affected by lahar flows, prompting the OCD to consider the expansion of the danger zone from the present six kilometers to 10 kilometers.

“If ever there will be simultaneous lahar flows and eruption of the volcano, we are talking about 60,000 persons or more to be affected in La Castellana alone. Our responders will be overwhelmed. All of them cannot be evacuated, so that is our consideration in extending the permanent danger zone to 10 kilometers,” Fernandez said.

The Department of the Interior and Local Government reported that all residents within the six-kilometer extended permanent danger zone have already been evacuated.

The Philippine National Police also established checkpoints within the six-kilometer danger zones to discourage residents from returning to their homes.