MALAWANIT, Magsaysay, Davao del Sur (MindaNews / 10 March) – Seventy permanent shelters similar to the transitional shelters built in Barangay Sagonsongan in Marawi City are ready for turnover on March 20 to families displaced by the series of above-Magnitude 6 earthquakes in the last quarter last year.
A house in Malawanit in Magsaysay collapses during the magnitude 6.3 earthquake in October 2019. MindaNews file photo by MANMAN DEJETO
Malawanit is “Ground Zero” of the October 16, 2019 Magnitude 6.3 quake. A mother and child were killed when the quake triggered a landslide in Purok 7 while the father and two other children were rescued.
The permanent shelters for displaced residents of Puroks 6 and 7 made of concrete flooring and “sandwich panels,” a Korean technology consisting of a pre-fabricated light metal sheets with Styrofoam core, have a floor area of 28 square meters each, bigger than Marawi’s 22-square meter shelter. It also has one room, unlike Marawi’s transitional shelter.
National Housing Authority (NHA) General Manager Marcelino Escalada visited the relocation site on December 26.
Anthony Allada, municipal information officer, told MindaNews on Monday that NHA will construct a total of 2,002 shelters for displaced families in 13 evacuation centers.
He said the local government had purchased the lots where the evacuation centers were set up from out of the donations it received.
Construction has also started in barangays Upper Bala for 204 permanent shelters, 154 in San Miguel and 117 in Balnate.
Shelter boxes were also donated for 56 displaced families from Purok 6. Residents are given 12 pieces of galvanized iron sheets, kalakat for walling, nails, Vulcaseal and solar lamp.
Displaced residents have built 56 shelters but Dennis Helbes, Malawanit barangay captain, told MindaNews the number could reach 62 as validation is still ongoing.
Allada said the town has 7,300 home-based evacuee-families whose houses were destroyed totally or partially but pitched makeshift tents where they were or nearby instead of going to evacuation centers. He said 2,300 houses were totally destroyed while 5,000 others were partially destroyed.
The families are entitled to receive 30,000 pesos and 10,000 for those with partially destroyed houses. (Carolyn O. Arguillas / MindaNews)
