Tacloban City- DSWD and the Local Government Unit of Tacloban City came
together for a turn-over ceremony of Tacloban’s pilot Evacuation Center at Brgy.
91, Abucay, Tacloban City. This is the first evacuation center in the city which is
funded by the national government.

DSWD provided a fund of P10, 000,000.00, which was released on January
15, 2016. This was downloaded to the LGU of Tacloban and was allocated towards
building this pilot evacuation center, with the goal of providing a place to stay for
disaster-evacuees and to avoid using classrooms as evacuation centers. The City
Government provided the land for the evacuation center.

This evacuation center is a two-storey building featuring a women-friendly
space, designated toilets for men and women, child-friendly space such as a
playground area, a stock room for relief goods and provisions, a radio room, a
multi-purpose roof deck, and a room for the camp management team.

The facility is Person With Disability (PWD) -friendly and contains a ramp
for ease of access, and a designated toilet. It also functions as a multi-purpose
activity/ training center while there are no disasters.

According to DSWD Regional Director Restituto Macuto, the center is a gift
of the national and the local government to the people who are especially
vulnerable to calamities and disasters, especially strong storms.

He also challenged the local barangay officials to take care of the facility,
urging the residents of Abucay to keep the surroundings clean, explaining that
sanitation is important to prevent diseases from spreading, especially during
times of disasters, when the center is populated.#