DAVAO CITY — Over 1,400 families in the hinterlands of Barangay Pichon, Caraga Davao Oriental are still stranded after tropical storm Kabayan devastated their village on Sunday.
Worse, the residents face the challenge of hunger as food become scare day by day and the government supply has yet to come due to the road access problem.
“The only way to bring in food is through the army’s helicopter, because the roads has been cut-off due to mudslides and landslides, even horses cannot wade through the mud and the road is not passable,” said Mandaya Tribal chieftain Christine Banugan. Even the water falls and reservoirs were damaged.
The government is having difficulty delivering aid to the residents because the Lamiawan bridge that connects the pichon and poblacion area collapsed.
As well as the bridge that connects barangay Palma gil and Barangay Pichon
Where many residents of the area are affected.
Banugan saud she already coordinated with the municipal and provincial government to meet the needs of the affected residents.
“No truck or even motorcycle can enter from the flat to Barangay Pichon, so how can we supply rice if they leave the plain areas. And as of now, there are no relief packs, food packs that have been distributed in Barangay Pichon because it is always difficult to go up, there is no road that’s why I called the incident command post under Caraga”, Banugan said
For the food to be delivered, she suggests “The government should plan airlift the relief packs because they will not wait for the road to be completed before the relief packs arrive. There are already many posts, many families in Sangab who walk from Sangab to Sitio Tubilan. The problem is there, the major concern aside from the road is the supply of rice or those relief packs, second is the water because the reservoirs are damaged because they are taking water from far away and the electricity is also damaged”
As of Monday, the residents can still but some rice, but the supply wouldn’t be enough a week, not anyone can buy buy a half-sack of rice.
Barangay pichon is one of the 17 barangays in Caraga, Davao Oriental, it was among the most devastated area when tropical sotrm kabayan made a landfall in Manay town which s just few kilometers away from said municipality.
A clearing operation has been conducted in barangay Palma Gil on the way to Barangay Pichon,, But Banugan said it canot be done before the New Year.
