DSWD: Shear line, LPA affect 1.2 million people; over 18,000 families evacuated

DSWD: Shear line, LPA affect 1.2 million people; over 18,000 families evacuated

MANILA, Philippines – More than 18,000 families have fled to evacuation centers across flood-affected regions in the country due to the impact of the shear line and low pressure area. Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) gave this information as it assessed the situation in calamity areas, particularly in Bicol, Western Visayas, Central Visayas, Eastern Visayas, and Northern Mindanao. According to the report, as of 6 p.m. on Sunday, 18,343 families (or a total of 76,138 individuals) continue to occupy 155 open evacuation centers after they were displaced by floods and heavy rains. Meanwhile, 7,833 families have relocated outside the centers and they are temporarily seeking refuge with relatives and friends. Meanwhile, 58 houses were completely destroyed, while 251 homes sustained partial damage, across 1,550 affected barangays in five regions. As for the total number of victims, DSWD reported 300,545 families (or 1,201,142 individuals) have been affected by bad weather. This figure is up from the previous progress report on Saturday that put the number of affected families at 275,597. Overall, rains and floods from LPA and shear line affect over 1 million, reported NDRRMC. Meanwhile, DSWD has provided humanitarian aid worth over P93 million to the affected persons. It also has over P2 billion in relief resources on hand to assist victims in flood-stricken areas.