Batangas situation starting to normalize after two earthquakes

The Department of Social Welfare and Development on Monday said the situation in Batangas is starting to normalize following the two earthquakes that struck the province on April 8.

A press statement from DSWD said displaced residents in the towns of Tingloy, Mabini, Lemery, Taal, and San Luis have begun returning to their homes after preemptive evacuations were conducted for fears of a Tsunami after the tremor.

Mabini was the epicenter of the swarm of earthquakes that struck Batangas last April 8, while Tingloy was the epicenter of a magnitude 5.5 earthquake that struck a week before.

The town of Mabini has been placed under a state of calamity.

Nonetheless, the DSWD said its field office in Region 4-A was still closely coordinating with local government units to assess the status of affected families and determine their needs.

The DSWD said its field office in CALABARZON would also deploy psychological processing teams in Batangas from April 18 to 22 to conduct critical incident stress debriefing (CISD) sessions for affected families.

The statement said CISD sessions "prevents or limits the development of post-traumatic stress in people exposed to critical incidents" and can help them recover from the after effects of the earthquake.

As of Monday, the DSWD provided a total of P5,295,272 worth of assistance to affected families in Batangas.

Meanwhile, the DSWD said the agency also extended a total of ?252,394.40 worth of assistance to those affected by the magnitude 6.0 earthquake that struck in Wao, Lanao del Sur last week.

More than 650 families or around 2,900 families in 11 barangays were affected in Wao town, which has been placed under a state of calamity by the local government. —Joseph Tristan Roxas/NB, GMA News