Officials of the Local Water Utilities Administration arrived in Negros Oriental recently to assess the extent of the damage to various water districts in areas badly hit by the recent tremor.

LWUA chairman Rene Villa said they have to make a personal assessment and not just rely on what is being reported in the media, as basis for immediate action to restore the supply of water in affected areas.

Villa said he received reports that the towns of Ayungon and La Libertad, and Guihulngan City, no longer have access to potable drinking water.

A mobile water purifying system and two other potable water treatment systems were sent to Guihulngan and La Libertad, although the water districts in these areas are not under the LWUA, Villa said.

Two more potable water treatment plants from Cagayan de Oro City and Iligan City are also set to be deployed to quake-stricken areas in the northern part of Negros Oriental, he said.

Villa, meanwhile, lauded Esperato Dicen, general manager of the Dumaguete City Water District and president of the Negros Oriental Association of Water Districts, for leading other members in responding to the urgent call for potable water supply.*JFP