A total of 604 families in Sibulan town whose households were damaged by Sendong received Thursday their emergency shelter assistance from the provincial government. 

Of the total, 257 have households that were deemed totally damaged by the typhoon while 347 were categorized as partially damaged. 

Provincial Social Welfare and Development Officer Alice Lagarde said the recipients whose houses were completely damaged will each receive P5,000 while those with partially damaged dwellings will get P2,500. 

Lagarde explained that the aid was three months overdue after the provincial social welfare office and the local government units (LGUs) affected by the typhoon struggled to complete the required paperwork and the verification process. 

“This took a long time because there was a huge number of requirements that we needed to comply with,” Lagarde told the recipients from Sibulan during the cash distribution ceremony at the Macias Sports Complex in Dumaguete City. 

“Sibulan is the first of the 12 Sendong-affected LGUs that will receive the emergency shelter assistance “since it is the hardest-hit LGU by the typhoon,” said Gov. Roel Degamo during his speech prior to the cash distribution. 

Aside from Sibulan, the other LGUs eligible to receive said financial aid are Valencia, Amlan, Siaton, Mabinay, Dauin, Zamboanguita, Bacong, Pamplona, Dumaguete City, Tanjay City, and San Jose. 

The total cash aid to be distributed to all 12 towns is at P12,880,000 for a total of 3,873 victims with completely and partially damaged houses. 

The cash aid is given to help the victims either repair their damaged houses or construct a new house in a new site. (RMN-PIA Negros Oriental)