FILE PHOTO: Many areas in Bago City in Negros Occidental are still to recover from the massive ash fall that rained on the town, turning verdant green vegetation, roads and rooftops into gray, after Mt. Kanlaon erupted on Dec. 9, 2024, as shown in this photo taken in Barangay Mailum on Dec. 11. | CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
BACOLOD CITY — Bago City in Negros Occidental is setting up a different kind of evacuation village for its residents who have been evacuated from Mt. Kanlaon’s 6-km danger zone.
Instead of tents, the city is using traditional bahay kubos (nipa and bamboo huts), according to Dr. Merijene Ortizo, head of the Bago City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office.
The city government, she said, has purchased 50 pre-fabricated bahay kubos at P50,000 each to be used as temporary shelters at its seven-hectare property in Barangay Napoles.
READ: After Mt. Kanlaon eruption, residents suffer skin irritation
She said the bahay kubo would solve the problem of the need for flooring that tents need.
“They also have better ventilation than tents that are hot to live in, are environmentally friendly, and will not be toppled by strong wind,” she said.
READ: Kanlaon: LGUs told letting evacuees return home a risky decision
Bago City has 24 families with 50 members who evacuated from the danger zone.
Temporary relocation
Ortizo said they were in the process of site development and the temporary relocation village was expected to be ready by early February.
READ: Kanlaon Volcano logs 14 ash emissions, 35 volcanic earthquakes
“The huts would be five meters apart to give the evacuees privacy and give them space to plant vegetables,” she said.
The Bago City Engineers Office was developing the site and constructing roads to make the place accessible to evacuees.
They would also seek funds from the Negros Occidental provincial government to set up a community kitchen and for portalets.
Ortizo said spaces would also be set up for the camp management team, medical services, and children.
She said Bago City also requested 1,000 tents from the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) in case Kanlaon Volcano’s alert level was raised to four which would mean an increase in the number of evacuees.
Volcano’s ground deformation
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) earlier warned of an abrupt increase in the volcano’s ground deformation that could lead to another sudden eruption similar to the one that occurred on Dec. 9.
It said communities within the 6-km radius of the summit crater must remain evacuated due to the danger of pyroclastic density currents, ballistic projectiles and ashfall, lava flows, rockfalls, and other related hazards.
Bago City Mayor Nicholas Yulo earlier issued an executive order regulating and discouraging night events and activities that would draw large crowds in to prevent mass casualties should Mt. Kanlaon erupt again.
Activities
In his Executive Order No. 2 dated Jan. 17, Yulo said the Phivolcs reported an increased activity at the volcano.
“This may pose serious risks to public safety, particularly during nighttime when visibility is reduced and emergency response is more challenging,” he said.
Night events, he said, would typically gather large crowds, significantly increasing the potential for mass casualties and logistical challenges in the event of a volcanic eruption that could result in pyroclastic flow and ash fall.
Yulo also said he even simplified the activities for the Bago City 59th Charter Anniversary from Feb. 5 to 19.
“Barangay fiestas and activities at night will also be regulated and discouraged,” he said.
Regulated night events that may be allowed to proceed, he said, would be subjected to assessment and favorable recommendation by the City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office and approval of the mayor.
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