Water aid arrives in Dinagat Islands amid severe crisis

WATER AID. Workers unload boxes of bottled drinking water delivered to Dinagat Islands to help communities affected by water shortages linked to prolonged dry conditions. The Office of Civil Defense-Caraga sent 10,800 bottles for distribution to five municipalities. Photo by Dinagat Islands Provincial DRRM Council SAN FRANCISCO, Agusan del Sur — The delivery of 10,800 bottles of drinking water to Dinagat Islands is providing immediate relief to communities facing shortages, even as the provincial government escalates its response to the continuing water crisis.

The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) in Caraga (Region 13) delivered the bottled water to the Dinagat Islands Provincial Emergency Operations Center in Santa Cruz on Friday last week.

The supplies will be distributed to residents in Basilisa, Cagdianao, Dinagat, San Jose, and Tubajon towns based on local assessments, situational reports, and the most urgent needs identified by each municipality.

The assistance was sent after prolonged dry conditions linked to El Niño affected access to safe and potable water in several communities.

Provincial disaster risk reduction and management officer Rosario Jr. R. Alon and Local DRRM III–Operations Section chief Jude Bajade received the shipment, together with personnel from the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office.

The arrival of water supplies comes as Dinagat Islands activated the Provincial Emergency Operations Center and Incident Management Team to coordinate the response to the province-wide water crisis, the Dinagat Islands Provincial Information Office (PIO) said./coa