
Bago City is setting up a different kind of evacuation village for its residents who have evacuated from Kanlaon Volcano’s 6-kilometer danger zone.
It is using traditional bahay kubos (huts made of nipa and bamboo) instead of tents, Dr. Merijene Ortizo, Bago City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office head, said on Tuesday, Jan. 21.
The city government has purchased 50 pre-fabricated huts to be used as shelters at a temporary relocation site at its 7-hectare property in Brgy Napoles, Ortizo said.
She said the bahay kubos that cost P50,000 each, including delivery and installation, have sturdy flooring unlike tents.
They also have better ventilation than tents that are hot to live in, are environmentally friendly and will not be toppled by strong wind, she said.
Bago City currently has 24 evacuee families with 50 members from the danger zone, she said.
Fourteen of the 50 huts were delivered on Tuesday.
They are in the process of site development and the temporary relocation village is expected to be ready by February, Ortizo said.
The huts will be placed five meters apart to give the evacuees privacy and space to plant vegetables, Ortizo said.
The demo farm of the Bago Office of the City Agriculturist is located on the 7-hectare property so the evacuees can have a source of livelihood, she said.
They will also seek funds from the Negros Occidental provincial government for the setting up of a community kitchen and for portalets, Ortizo said.
Spaces will also be set up for the camp management team, medical services and for children, she added.
She said Bago City has also requested 1,000 tens from the Office of Civil Defense in case Kanlaon Volcano’s alert level is raised to four that would mean an increase in evacuees.*