MASANTOL, Pampanga — Gov. Lilia “Nanay” Pineda personally led relief operations in the flood-affected municipalities of Macabebe and Masantol in the wake of Typhoon Crising and the habagat rains on Sunday, July 20.
Pineda visited severely flooded barangays to assess the condition of residents, bringing with her a total of 28,945 family food packs, made possible through the support of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and Social Welfare and Development Secretary Rex Gatchalian.
Of the total, 20,418 food packs were designated for Masantol and 8,527 for Macabebe—the two municipalities with the most number of affected barangays.
Each food pack contains six kilograms of rice, canned goods, coffee, and cereal drink, providing immediate sustenance to displaced families.
“Malaki na po ang tubig sa amin. May tindahan po ako sa bahay, pero matumal ang benta. Kaya napakalaking tulong po nitong food packs.
Maraming salamat po kay Nanay Gov,” shared Angelina Ebbay, a resident of Barangay San Francisco in Macabebe.
The governor reminded all affected residents to remain vigilant and to prioritize their health and safety in times of calamities.
“Walang Linggo kapag may bagyo. Lahat po ng lubog na lugar, mag-ingat po kayo. Kung meron po kayong nararamdamang sakit, pumunta po kayo sa mga kapitan ninyo upang agad kayong madala sa Kapitolyo at magamot.”
The provincial disaster risk reduction and management office reported that as of 11 a.m. of July 20, a total of 54 barangays across Pampanga have been affected by flooding caused by continuous rainfall and high tide conditions.
The provincial social welfare office said that the distribution of food packs will continue throughout the week to provide much-needed assistance to other flood-affected towns in the province.
Joining the governor during the relief operations were DSWD Region 3 director Venus Rebuldela, PSWD officer Fe Manarang, PDRRMO chief Janica Yambao, provincial government environment and natural resources office chief Arthur Punsalan, provincial engineer Noli Pangan, and staff from the general services office.
Photos: Luisse Rutao/PPIO
