Mining Disaster Victims First To Endure Effects Of Natural Calamities

Published by MAC on 2007-01-15
Source: MACEC News and Information Service News

Mining Disaster Victims First to Endure Effects of Natural Calamities

MACEC News and Information Service News Report

15th January 2007

BOAC, MARINDUQUE – The Marinduque Council for Environmental Concerns in partnership with the Citizen’s Disaster Response Center and Caritas Switzerland distributed protein-based relief packages to 2,155 families in barangays which were heavily affected by the fury of supertyphoon Reming.

In the course of the damage assessment and humanitarian operations, MACEC noted that families in the communities along Calancan Bay, Boac River and Mogpog River (the areas affected by the various disasters wrought by Placer Dome’s Marcopper Mining Corporation) were also the ones heavily affected by Supertyphoon Reming which devastated the island-province on November 30 to December 1 of 2006. Almost 27,000 families in all of the six town of the province were homeless because 70%-80% of all houses built of light materials were either partially or totally destroyed.

According to Myke Magalang, MACEC Executive Secretary, “the poorest and most vulnerable of the victims of the recent supertyphoon, who were also the victims of the Marcopper disasters, remain homeless until today. MACEC is calling on all humanitarian aid agencies to help the province in the rehabilitation efforts and not concentrate their assistance in the Bicol Region.”

MIGUEL "Myke" R. MAGALANG
Executive Secretary
Marinduque Council for Environmental Concerns
Second Floor, Sacred Heart Diocesan Pastoral Center Cathedral Compound, Boac,
4900 Marinduque, Philippines
Tel: (042) 332-27-13