PRC-Agusan del Sur awards boats to Bunawan town

AGUSAN DEL SUR, Sep. 23 (PIA) - The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) Agusan del Sur Chapter turned-over earlier three boats to the municipality of Bunawan for emergency use during floods in the area.

With the presence of the PRC Board of Directors, Agusan del Sur Vice Governor Santiago Cane Jr. handed-over the responsibility documents to Bunawan Mayor Edwin Elorde after the provincial flag raising ceremony at the provincial capitol.

According to PRC Officer-in-Charge Darwina Ligan, the municipality of Bunawan is the second municipality awarded with the boats in Agusan del Sur. The first recipient municipality was Esperanza who also received three boats last August 19, this year. Both municipalities are flood-prone areas being located along Agusan river, while the province of Agusan del Sur itself is a basin formation, a catchment of waters from Bukidnon in the west, Compostela Valley in the south and Surigao del Sur in the east.

The boats are made of fiber glass with double-walled body and can carry more or less ten persons. All boats are powered with 30 horsepower outboard engines.

“We are very grateful to have these boats in our municipality. In behalf of the people of Bunawan, I am expressing my heartfelt thanks to the Philippine Red Cross for giving us these very needed equipment. We all know here in Agusan del Sur that starting this month, floods may come anytime because it is already rainy season. It is therefore timely that we became the second recipient municipality of these boats. This means life to us,” Mayor Elorde said.

OIC Darwina Ligan said the boats were given by the Netherlands Red Cross, thru Guineviene De Jesus, PRC Agusan del Sur chapter Partner for Resilience. They were manufactured in Manila and were directly shipped to Agusan del Sur Red Cross for distribution. Each boat has an estimated cost of P210,000, while each of the outboard engine costs P150,000 each. (DMS/PIA-Agusan del Sur)