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The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) through its Field Office V is set to distribute cash assistance to families with casualties and injured members due to the massive flooding and landslide brought by Tropical Depression Usman in the region.

The Field Office is now gathering documents to facilitate the processing of the burial and medical assistance for the affected families. Social workers  are also continuously implementing psycho-social interventions and augmenting food and non-food items in areas hit by the tropical depression.

FO V also deployed emergency telecommunications equipment in Sagnay, Camarines Sur to aid in the response operations in the area, which was hit by a landslide on Saturday.

In Eastern Visayas,   a DSWD winged van will deliver 2,400 family food packs (FFPs) and 1,800 pieces of blankets to Lope De Vega, Northern Samar  any time today.  Likewise, two trucks of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and one truck rented by the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) are now headed to Catarman to deliver  2,400 FFPs and 1,400 blankets.

Meanwhile, in a radio interview this morning, DSWD spokesperson, Assistant Secretary Glenda Relova said that the Department has already asked the assistance of the Philippine Air Force (PAF) in order to deliver relief assistance to isolated areas.

“In-employ na namin ang tulong ng ating mga C-130 para makapagdala na kami ng goods sa mga lugar na hindi talaga maabot by land or by boat (We have already sought the assistance of C-130 planes to deliver goods to places that cannot be reached by land or by boat),” she said.

As of 4pm today, the DSWD Disaster Response Management Bureau (DRMB) reported that some 12,990 families or 57,351 individuals are still staying in 117 evacuation centers in Regions CALABARZON, MIMAROPA, V, and VIII.

The Department is set to conduct a post-disaster evaluation in the following days to determine the extent of assistance needed for the rehabilitation and recovery of the survivors. ###