SUBIC BAY FREEPORT – The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) said the 11-man emergency response team it sent to Siargao in Surigao del Norte will continue to provide assistance in clearing operations on the typhoon-devastated island until December 29.
SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma Eisma said the team will remain on the island during Christmas to help fast-track the clean-up activities, particularly in areas most affected by Typhoon Odette last week.
“They will have to spend Christmas there, away from their families, but they will be home by New Year. We have set a 10-day assistance mission, and they are willing to complete it,” Eisma said.
“Along with donations for the typhoon victims in Siargao and other areas of Surigao del Norte, the SBMA is also sending care packages for our guys on the ground so that they will feel the warmth of Christmas while completing their work there,” she added.
The SBMA team enplaned early Sunday morning for the Siargao Sayak Airport and was welcomed by local officials led by Del Carmen Mayor Proserpina Corro.
SBMA Fire Department manager Ranny Magno, who headed the emergency responders, said they have salvaged a rescue truck of the local Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (DRRMO) and are now using this vehicle to move around the disaster area.
He said the team initially helped assess the damage at the municipality of Del Carmen, and later conducted clearing operations at the old municipal building and at the Del Carmen National High School.
“All communication and power lines are down, but we are all safe and doing well,” Magno said in a message to the SBMA. “We will arrive back in Subic on December 29. Merry Christmas to all!” he added.
Magno also said that they are working with the DRRMO team and the town’s Engineering Department to speed up clearing operations. The team brought along emergency rescue equipment like chainsaws, power tools, and portable generators.
Feedback from Siargao residents showed that the SBMA team “is such a big help to Siargao” and that “the whole island is sending appreciation for their work.” Some residents said they will be spending Christmas with the team in recognition of their assistance.
Chairman Eisma said donations are pouring in from stakeholders in the Subic Bay Freeport. The agency has specifically requested for sleeping mats, hygiene kits, easy-open canned goods, mosquito nets, pre-loved clothes, and bottled water, which are badly needed by the typhoon victims.
The SBMA official is also coordinating a separate relief effort for Cebu in cooperation with the Filipino American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston in Texas.
“Timely response is important, and we need to act fast. We are so fortunate that Subic stakeholders are very sympathetic to our efforts in helping others,” Eisma said, adding that the SBMA has reached out to the Department of Transportation through Sec. Arthur Tugade to send the donations by plane.
Meanwhile, SBMA Public Relations Officer Armie Llamas said that aside from the initial in-kind donation they sent to Surigao, they have also received cash donations that were used to purchase 30 20-liter containers of potable drinking water, grocery items, and hygiene kits. These will also be sent to Magno for distribution in Siargao, she added. She also said that the SBMA continues to receive donations through the SBMA Public Relations Office or the SBMA Fire Department where they are packaged and labelled before shipping.