Press Release - Senator Tolentino bats for emergency assistance to farmers displaced by Kanlaon eruption, lahar flows

Senate Majority Leader Francis 'Tol' Tolentino will seek the intervention of the Department of Agriculture (DA) to provide emergency assistance to upland farmers in Negros Island, whose livelihoods were wiped out by Mt. Kanlaon's June 3 eruption and the spate of lahar flows in recent weeks.

Tolentino learned about the plight of the Kanlaon farmers from La Castellana, Negros Occidental, Mayor Alme Rhummyla Mangilimutan, over the senator's radio program, 'Usapang Tol.'

"Mayor, we will raise this concern to the Department of Agriculture to determine what kinds of interventions they can provide for our farmers," Tolentino assured Mangilimutan.

"In the meantime, our immediate focus should be on the health concerns of your constituents," added the senator.

It should be recalled that Tolentino previously appealed to the Department of Health (DOH) to work with local water districts in affected communities around Mt. Kanlaon to ensure the supply of clean and potable water for residents and evacuees.

Mangilimutan shared that the DOH has already deployed medical teams and distributed water purification tablets and face masks to affected residents.

The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) of the Department of National Defense (DND) also responded to Tolentino's appeal by sending over water filtration equipment to La Castellana to enable access to safe drinking water.

Tolentino stressed that Mt. Kanlaon is one of the natural sources of clean water in Negros Island, and any contamination would pose significant health risks to communities both in Negros Occidental and Oriental.