(l-r) at the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council meeting in Bacolod City on Friday*
The Regional Task Force Kanlaon has lifted the ban on entering the 6-kilometer extended danger zone from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m., Office of the Civil Defense Negros Island Region Director Donato Sermeno III said on Friday, May 16.
The ban on entry into the 6-kilometer danger zone was imposed following Kanlaon’s explosive eruption at 2:55 a.m. Tuesday. The eruption lasted for 5 minutes emitting voluminous ash that hit 51 barangays in five cities and nine towns in four provinces.
The 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. entry period is open to farmers and family heads to attend to their crops, livestock and visit their houses within the 6-kilometer extended danger zone, Sermeno said.
Sermeno said they do not want residents to be complacent about the danger because the behavior of Kanlaon is unpredictable.
PDRRMC MEETING
The Negros Occidental Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council held its Second Quarter Meeting at the Capitol in Bacolod City on Friday, where the Kanlaon Volcano situation was tackled, Sermeno said.
They discussed the proposed establishment of permanent evacuation centers and resettlement sites for the residents affected by Kanlaon Volcano’s unrest, he said.
Sermeno said La Castellana’s proposed evacuation sites in barangays Talaptap and Lalagsan have been approved, However, the owner of the Lalagsan targeted site does not seem to want to sell the property, he added.
La Carlota was asked to look for other relocation sites since its proposed sites in barangays Haguimit, San Miguel and La Granja could be affected by pyroclastic density current or PDC emitted by Kanlaon Volcano, he added.
The Bago City proposed relocation site has been identified as a tsunami prone area, Sermeno added.
San Carlos City also has a proposed relocation site in Brgy Prosperidad for its residents at Brgy Codcod who could be affected by a Kanlaon eruption.
Sermeno said the affected LGUs would have to apply for funding from the Department of Budget and Management for their relocation projects.
NAT’L TASK FORCE
The National Task Force Kanlaon (NTFK) led by Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. held its inaugural meeting at Camp General Emilio Aguinaldo on May 8.
Teodoro said the gathering marked a significant step toward establishing a more coordinated and proactive approach to disaster management in Negros Island, following the eruption of Kanlaon Volcano.
The event aligned with Administrative Order No. 32 signed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., which mandates the creation of the task force to oversee disaster recovery efforts and help communities affected by volcanic activity rebuild and become more resilient.
A central part of the meeting was the development of the Kanlaon Recovery and Development Plan (KRDP), envisioned as a blueprint for rebuilding communities and strengthening resilience in affected areas, the Office of Civil Defense reported.
A working draft of the KRDP shall be submitted before the final budget call, enabling the plan to be presented to the President ahead of the FY-2026 budget submission deadline on July 31, it said.
Undersecretary Ariel F. Nepomuceno of OCD expressed full support for the initiative, emphasizing the importance of shifting from traditional, response-focused strategies to more proactive resilience-building approaches.*