TACLOBAN CITY – Some 18,395 families in Eastern Samar affected by Typhoon Ambo have received food assistance from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
Each affected family received a food pack containing rice, coffee, and canned goods sufficient for three to five days for a family of five, Joshua Kempis, DSWD 8 (Eastern Visayas) disaster response operation division information officer, said in a statement on Friday.
“Relief operations are ongoing both in Eastern and Northern Samar. Our response teams are on standby, ready to assist our LGUs. We are also still gathering more reports as to the total number of affected families,” Kempis said.
The DSWD has served 7,300 families in Oras town, 4,571 in Arteche, 3,324 in Dolores, 1,700 in San Policarpio, and 1,500 in Can-avid, distributing relief items worth PHP10.1 million.
The regional office here has requested an additional 40,000 family food packs from the DSWD’s Visayas Disaster Response Center in Cebu City and as of May 19, a total of 32,950 packs had been delivered and the rest is expected to arrive in the next days.
On May 14, “Ambo” brought violent winds and heavy to intense rains over the northern portion of Eastern Samar and the southern part of Northern Samar.
The typhoon packed maximum sustained winds of up to 155 kph and gustiness of up to 255 kph. (PNA)
