3 provinces relocation sites for 5K eruption-hit families
Credit to Author: Franz Lewin Embudo| Date: Tue, 04 Feb 2020 17:11:49 +0000
A Cabinet official on Tuesday said the government was ready to permanently relocate 5,000 families living within the 7-kilometer radius danger zone of Taal Volcano.
Secretary Karlos Nograles disclosed that the government had already identified housing units ready for occupancy of about 5,000 families or 25,000 people.
“So, the way this administration, the government, works is we try to anticipate everything, create contingency measures, whatever contingencies may come,” he told a news conference in Quezon City on Tuesday.
Nograles identified the provinces of Bulacan, Laguna and Cavite as possible relocation sites.
“Given what has been happening to Taal, it may seem [that] we are headed toward declaring the 7-km radius [as off-limits to the residents],” he said.
The relocated families will be given livelihood, according to Nograles.
“Kapag ni-relocate natin sila doon, kasama sa relocation package ‘yung livelihood package (When we relocate them there, livelihood package is included in the relocation package),” he said.
Nograles added that the livelihood package will be provided by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, Department of Trade Industry and Department of Social Welfare and Development, among other agencies.
Alert Level 3 remains over Taal Volcano, which means “sudden steam-driven and even weak phreatomagmatic explosions, volcanic earthquakes, ashfall and lethal volcanic gas expulsions” could still happen.