Guinobatan, Albay -- The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) turned over Certificates of Occupancy to 165 new homes for families made homeless by lahar flooding in Daraga and Guinobatan, Albay. The lahar flooding was caused by Super Typhoon Rolly (international name: Goni), which made landfall in Albay on November 1, 2020, and debris from Mayon Volcano’s eruption on January 18, 2018.

Goni, considered the world’s most powerful tropical cyclone in 2020, affected 522,600 families or 2,030,130 persons, in Regions II, III, CALABARZON, MIMAROPA, V, VIII, CAR, and NCR.

Immediately after the damage assessment in Albay, PRC Chairman Richard Gordon initiated a search for a suitable place to relocate those who lost their homes to the lahar flood.

“Gusto natin makabangon kaagad ang tao. Sabi ko nga kay Governor Bichara, kailangan ko ng lote na malaki, na pwede paglagyan ng mga tao. At dali-dali naman, umaksyon na kaagad si Governor Bichara. At ngayon, nalagay na natin dun ‘yung mga bahay para sa mga pamilyang nawalan ng tahanan dahil sa lahar na dulot ng Super Typhoon Rolly at Mt. Mayon eruption,” Chairman Gordon said.

Each house costs more than P200,000.00 while each family also received the first tranche of P10,000.00 cash assistance to help them rehabilitate their livelihoods. The relocation site, in Bubulusan, Guinobatan, is assessed to be safe, compared to the locations of the beneficiaries’ homes before the super typhoon.

PRC collaborated with local governments in Albay and various government agencies such as the Albay provincial human settlement office and the provincial engineering office to make the housing project possible.

The project was also made possible through partnership with International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Canadian Red Cross, Embassy of the Republic of Korea, British Embassy, Thai Red Cross, Spanish Red Cross, Singapore Red Cross, and online donors. (Philippine Red Cross)