Iloilo City sends PHP 1.6-M quake aid to Mindanao

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor

The Iloilo City government is sending PHP 1.6 million in financial assistance to eight hard-hit local government units (LGUs) in Mindanao in the aftermath of the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that struck off Sarangani province on June 8.

Under the assistance package approved by the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, each of the eight affected LGUs will receive PHP 200,000 in cash aid.

“In times of calamity, it is important that we show solidarity and support for our fellow Filipinos,” Iloilo City Mayor Raisa Treñas-Chu said Tuesday, June 23.

She said the city coordinated through the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office to identify the areas most in need of assistance and ensure that aid reaches the intended beneficiaries.

The city government did not specify whether the cash assistance will be coursed directly to the affected local government units or processed through disaster response agencies.

The recipient LGUs are General Santos City in South Cotabato; Glan, Maasim, Kiamba, and Malapatan in Sarangani province; and Jose Abad Santos, Sarangani, and Malita in Davao Occidental.

All eight LGUs have declared a state of calamity following the earthquake.

The affected areas account for 167 barangays and more than 301,000 families, or about 1.2 million people, affected by the quake.

Among the hardest-hit areas were General Santos City, Jose Abad Santos, and Malita, each recording 26 affected barangays.

“This has always been the practice of Iloilo City. Whenever other areas are struck by disasters, we help in whatever way we can. This spirit of compassion and solidarity is deeply rooted among Ilonggos,” Treñas-Chu said.

Data from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) as of June 20 showed that the magnitude 7.8 earthquake affected about 1.59 million people, or 375,664 families, in 580 barangays across the Davao Region and Soccsksargen.

The disaster council also reported 77 deaths, 1,339 injured, and 31 still missing due to the earthquake.

The June 8 quake, which struck off Sarangani at 7:37 a.m. and sent a tsunami into nearby coasts, was the strongest to hit the Philippines since the 1976 Moro Gulf earthquake and among the most destructive in the country in nearly five decades.