BONTOC, Mountain Province – The municipal government, through the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO) and Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office (MSWDO), provided relief assistance to the April 10 fire victims in Barangay Mainit.
According to MDRRM Officer Johanna Padaen, the family was given one cavan of rice, one carton of assorted canned goods, five pillows, five bedsheets and pillowcases, five blankets, and five hygiene kits.
Padaen added that the relief assistance was sourced out from the 5% calamity fund of the municipality except for the five hygiene kits that were earlier provided by the Office of the Civil Defense (OCD) to the municipal government.
Per a report recorded by the Bontoc Operations Center, at around 3:00 P.M. on April 10, 2022, a fire damaged a one-storey residential house in Sitio Perwa, Barangay Mainit, Bontoc, Mountain Province.
The residential house is owned by the late To-ok, but is currently occupied by the family of May Ann Pusot with five household members.
The house was totally engulfed by the fire with all their properties turned into ashes, including their rice harvest. Also, the nearby house owned by Blandina Nagados was partially affected.
As Mainit currently has poor mobile phone reception and the residents cannot call the authorities for assistance, the community immediately conducted a bucket brigade and was able to put out the fire at 3:30 P.M.
On April 11, 2022, the MDRRMO received a report from Barangay Secretary Eliza Lumachay about the structural fire injuring one victim who suffered from minor burns on his forehead while saving his son.
As per the investigation of the Bontoc Fire Station, the fire incident was caused by a spark at the fuse box due to the usage of a jumper.
Upon receipt of the report, Bontoc Mayor Franklin Odsey immediately directed the concerned offices for the provision of the above-mentioned relief goods.
“I would like to commend and thank the community for being the first responders. In emergencies like this, the spirit of og-ogfo is observed in every Ifuntok, thus making every struggle manageable,” he added.
