The number of displaced residents due to Taal eruption has reached the one million mark, the provincial government of Batangas announced Tuesday.
According to Batangas Governor Hermilando Mandanas, the numbers were based on the population of residents living within the declared lockdown areas.
Mandanas said more or less 200,000 people are currently staying in evacuation centers in Batangas, Laguna, Cavite, and Quezon.
The Batangas Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (PDRRMO) around 200,000 people are staying in evacuation centers while another 800,000 individuals took shelter in the houses of relatives in non-affected areas in the province, and nearby provinces including Metro Manila.
The provincial government placed the towns of Agoncillo, Alitagtag, Balete, Cuenca, Laurel, Lemery, Malvar, Mataas na Kahoy, San Nicolas, Santa Teresita, Taal, Talisay under total lockdown while partial lockdown is in effect in the cities of Tanauan and Lipa.
Mandanas is expecting that there are no more people within the 14-kilometer danger zone as the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) prohibits reentry of evacuees in areas under lockdown.
The governor also asked the displaced residents outside evacuation centers to coordinate with local government units (LGUs) where they are staying.
“We are currently locating all the evacuees outside the evacuation centers to extend help to them. We cannot just abandon them, they too are affected, they too need help,” Mandanas told Manila Bulletin.
Alert level 4 is still hoisted in the Taal volcano which means a hazardous eruption is possible within hours or days.
