DSWD-7 sends relief to earthquake victims
By Hazel F. Gloria
CEBU CITY, February 9 (PIA) -- While search and rescue operations continue in earthquake devastated areas in Negros Oriental, Social Workers from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in Central Visayas activated its Quick Response Teams.
The teams, which have been placed on “Red Alert” status, are tasked to prepare relief goods such as food packs, mats, blankets, mosquito nets, slippers and tents for evacuation centers in Guihulngan, La Libertad.
About 30 tents, 330 mats, 318 blankets, 275 mosquito nets , 2,000 bottles of mineral water and 2,000 family packs, 160 boxes of canned goods (sardines and beef loaf) were shipped to the affected areas yesterday.
These goods were initially distributed to the earthquake victims in Guihulngan, which is the hardest hit, La libertad, Bindoy and Tayasan. Delivery for the other areas follows.
As more reports are coming in, the DSWD is doubling its efforts to pack additional goods for the next round of shipment and relief distribution in the other affected municipalities in Negros Oriental.
DSWD secretary Dinky Soliman reported that so far, an estimated 12,231 families had been affected with 22 confirmed dead, 82 missing and 52 injured as of 3:00 pm today.
A magnitude 6.9 earthquake, the strongest recorded in Central Visayas in 90 years, struck the northern towns in NegrosOoriental at 11: 49 am February 6.
Social Workers both from the Local Government Units and the Social Welfare and Development Team Offices in Negros Oriental conducted initial defusing sessions to a few survivors in the various evacuation centers temporarily set up for the purpose.
DSWD regional director Ma. Evelyn Macapobre has instructed her staff to go on a 24/7 duty and had already fielded stress debriefers to conduct psycho-social intervention to the grieving families.
“We are now keeping in touch with all our local counterparts in Negros Oriental to generate updates for provision of augmentation support especially along relief works," she added.
A Donation Desk is now put up at the DSWD Field Office-7 along M.J. Cuenco Ave., Cebu City. One may call our Earthquake Hotline is 2321192.(mbcn/hfg/PIA-7 & DSWD-7)
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Parents, teachers, brgy officials in CV inspect school bldgs
After the earthquake
By Amorganda Saludar
CEBU CITY February 9 (PIA) --- Amid the suspension of classes declared by the Department of Education (DepEd-7) in all public and private elementary and high school levels in the region yesterday, concerned stakeholders immediately conducted room to room structural inspections on possible damages to school buildings wrought by the strong quake on February 6.
DepEd 7 assistant regional director Carmelita Dulangon said that teachers, parents and barangay officials joined forces to ensure the structural fitness of the school buildings for the safety of the students.
“We really urged the teachers to initiate inspections in their respective areas being more familiar of their classrooms. They can easily notice any changes in the structure of the classroom,” Dulangon said.
The DepEd 7 official added that parents should be part of the inspection team so they could really attest that the rooms are in good condition and also to ease their worries that their children are safe in school.
Barangay officials should also help in the conduct of the inspection so they would know the condition and needs of the schools under their barangays following the quake, according to Dulangon.
She also stressed that the inspection will cover every corner of each classroom including comfort rooms and fences.
In line with this, the DepEd 7 required all the schools to submit written reports to her office on the inspection they conducted in their respective schools.
“Every teacher must sign and submit written reports on the findings they have while conducting the inspection of classrooms and then the principals in each school consolidate the reports and submit them to the DepEd office,” Dulangon declared.
She added the written report serve as proof that the teacher in that certain school is faithfully inspected so parents become confident that their children are safe in school.
In case the inspections yielded major damages to the structures the teacher then requests the City Engineering Office to conduct its own inspection and signed a certification indicating there is a need to vacate the room and classes to be transferred to a safer room, DepEd officials said.
Dulangon said that they have already received reports from certain schools after the stakeholders completed their inspection.
“In fact we already have here the reports coming from Bogo City Division and some private schools have submitted their respective reports that they already resumed classes because there were no defects found in their classrooms,” Dulangon concluded. (FCR/AS/PIA-CEBU)