The Negros Occidental provincial government is preparing to build the first of several high-rise buildings at the Panaad Park in Bacolod City that will have the capacity to house 5,000 evacuees, Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz said on Wednesday, Nov. 6.
It will be an emergency housing facility and athletes’ village, he said.
Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson “has directed that this be prioritized and we already have the plans”, Diaz said.
The evacuation facilities are being prepared for a possible Kanlaon Volcano eruption and other calamities.
The 5-storey dormitories will be used as evacuation centers, and can also house athletes during sporting events and training, he said.
Diaz said each building will cost about P50 million with the capacity to accommodate 500 evacuees.
The provincial government has savings for the construction of the first building, he said.
The Office of Civil Defense instruction is for the provincial government to prepare facilities for 5,000 evacuees, Diaz said.
Meanwhile, the new Provincial Administration Center that is under construction in Bacolod City is targeted to be completed in June 2025, he added.*