The government is ready to augment resources on the ground to address gaps in its response to victims of the Mt. Kanlaon eruption, Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Assistant Secretary Bernardo Rafaelito R. Alejandro IV said on Wednesday.

Alejandro made the assurance as he reported that evacuation centers are now equipped with necessities to serve as temporary shelters for displaced families.

This would encourage individuals and families to evacuate since they have a place to stay, cook and attend to sanitary needs, he said.

“Our task now is really to prepare the different evacuation centers and assure our local government leaders, yung ating communities na we are ready to receive them jointly with the local government units,” Alejandro said.

“That is what we are addressing now because as far as relief items are concerned, we are assured by DSWD that we can sustain a long haul operation,” he added.

The OCD reported 9,258 persons or 9,942 families have already evacuated, with 12,000 currently in 30 evacuation centers.

Alejandro said the number of evacuees could still increase depending on Mt. Kanlaon’s activity. | PND