ILOILO – Trees knocked down to give way to the national government’s dam project in Calinog town would be converted into shelter materials then donated to families whose houses were damaged by typhoon “Odette” that struck parts of Western Visayas in December last year.
“The splicing of mahogany and gmelina trees already started. The trees were cut down to pave the way for the Jalaur River Multi-Purpose Project II (JRMP II),” said Cindy Ferrer, information officer of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD).
The 100-cubic meter woods stocked in Barangay Alibunan, Calinog were turned over by the National Irrigation Administration (NIA), the implementer of JRMP II, to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), which the OCD urged to be donated to families heavily affected by the typhoon.
OCD tapped the services of 10 chainsaw operators in Calinog and adjacent Lambunao town for the processing of the wood as ready materials for houses.
It is expected to be completed in 10 to 15 days depending on the weather condition, and will be shipped to Negros Occidental tentatively on April 26.
It will also be the one to shoulder the expenses of transporting the materials particularly to the local government units of Kabankalan, Sipalay, Ilog, and Hinoba-an.
“We will turn them over to the PDRRMO (Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction And Management Office) of Negros Occidental since they know who are the most in need. But the focus are the severely affected municipalities,” Ferrer added.
The provision of materials is their immediate intervention for the victims’ recovery and rebuilding of houses while waiting for the feedback of the post-disaster needs assessment (PDNA) that they submitted to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).
Data from the regional DRRMC showed that Hinoba-an had 11,884 damaged houses, while Ilog had 14,879; 4,818 in Kabankalan; and 16,974 in Sipalay. (PNA/PN)
