(CNN Philippines) – The Provincial Board of Cebu put the entire province under a state of calamity on Monday (May 25) due to the effects of a prolonged dry spell.
The board passed the resolution at 1 p.m. on the recommendation of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.
A day before, provincial disaster risk officer Baltazar Tribunalo Jr. described the effects of the below-normal rainfall as a “creeping disaster.”
Cebu is said to be among 12 provinces threatened by a dry spell as effects of the El Niño continued to intensify, possibly until the end of the year.
With the declaration, some P36.3 million may be used to help farmers and other constituents of towns hit by El Niño.
The P36.3 million represents 30% of the P121-million fund of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (PDRRM).
Some mayors have asked the Capitol for food packs, seedlings, and school supplies for farmers, most of whom barely earned anything in the past few weeks.
The quick response funds can be used to buy barrels, water pumps, hoses, food packs, and other assistance needed by the affected families, said PDRRM Office Information Officer Jules Regner.
Five towns – Borbon, Tabuelan, Tuburan, Moalboal, and Argao – were already put under a state of calamity ahead of the board’s declaration covering the entire province.
