BACOLOD City – The provincial government of Negros Occidental has relocated a total of 677 internally displaced persons (IDPs) affected by the recent eruption of Mount Kanlaon to a new relocation site in the municipality of La Castellana.
Buses were provided to transport evacuees from temporary shelters in schools to their assigned relocation areas. The decampment began over the weekend, involving 463 individuals from Barangay Mansalanao and 214 from Barangay Sag-ang.
As part of the ongoing relief efforts, sakolins (plastic sheets for temporary shelter) were turned over to the La Castellana Incident Management Team (IMT).
Additionally, 50 modular tents were distributed to barangays Mansalanao and Biak na Bato, while 30 modular tents were allocated to Barangay Masulog.
Personnel from the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office (PSWDO) and the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) assisted in the decampment operations.
The PDRRMO also deployed an ambulance, a water tanker, a rescue truck, and other support vehicles to facilitate the transfer of evacuees. A generator set with a sufficient fuel supply was delivered to Masulog High School Extension.
Earlier, Provincial Administrator Atty. Rayfrando Diaz convened a meeting with La Castellana Mayor Rhummyla Nicor Mangilimutan and representatives from national agencies and other stakeholders to discuss the transition of evacuees from school-based evacuation centers to alternative safe sites.
More than 2,000 evacuees from barangays Sag-ang, Mansalanao, Masulog, Biak na Bato, and Cabagnaan are set to be relocated to designated barangay covered courts and other identified safe areas.
The relocation aims to ensure the continuity of education in schools previously used as evacuation centers and to uphold the dignity and welfare of displaced families.
This move complies with National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) Memorandum No. 135, Series of 2025, which mandates the clearing of all school-based evacuation sites ahead of the start of the new academic year.
The IDPs are residents living within the 4-kilometer permanent danger zone of Mt. Kanlaon, which remains under close monitoring./PN
