As relief operations continue  in the northern part of Negros Oriental, the number of dead  from  the Feb. 6  earthquake has risen to 57, the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council  reported at 5 p.m. yesterday.

Two more bodies, no longer recognizable, were retrieved by residents in Barangay Solongon, La Libertad town,  Capitol sources said.

The bodies are believed to be those of Reban and Charita Lisondra, reports added.

Of the 57 confirmed dead, 24 were in Guihulngan City, 14 in La Libertad, 10  in Jimalalud, three each in Tayasan and Ayungon, two in Manjuyod,  and one in Bindoy.

The PDRRMC also reported that 60 people still remain unaccounted for as of last count.

While humanitarian aid to quake victims has  been ongoing in the past three weeks, only half of the  families and individuals affected have been served so far, due to inaccessibility of  some areas in the first  district of  the province.

The PDRRMC’s latest report showed that a total of 63,363 families or 316, 815 individuals from 166 barangays in the nine local government units in the first  district have been reported as having displaced by the temblor.

Of this, 37,000 families, or 184,000 individuals, have so far been served.

Already,  P41.7 million in relief goods have been distributed to the earthquake victims  including P24-million worth of aid from the Department of Social Welfare and Development;  P12.5 million  from   local governments; and P5.1 million from  non-government and people’s organizations.

Until now, aftershocks are still being felt in many areas in the north while  homeless families are still camped out at evacuation centers awaiting aid to rebuild their houses,  or  to relocate them.*JFP

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