Pasay city: Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Rex Gatchalian assured that all of the agency's field offices across the country are prepared for a coordinated disaster response amid Tropical Storm Crising and the southwest monsoon, known locally as habagat.

According to Philippines News Agency, Gatchalian emphasized the importance of a synchronized response among the field offices as Crising affects the northern regions while the habagat impacts the western side of the Philippines. He made these remarks shortly before President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s site visit at the National Resource Operations Center (NROC) in Pasay City.

The DSWD chief confirmed that all field offices are ready to provide relief aid to families impacted by the two weather systems. The latest report from the Disaster Response Operations Management, Information and Communication (DROMIC) indicates that 5,022 families, or 17,694 individuals, across 142 barangays in Mimaropa, Western Visayas, Central Visayas, and Zamboanga Peninsula have been affected by the heavy rains.

The DSWD has already distributed PHP744,539 worth of family food packs and non-food items to 1,000 disaster-hit families in Antique, 25 in Capiz, and 177 in Negros Occidental, all located in Western Visayas. Quick Response Teams and emergency logistics equipment from the field offices are on standby for immediate deployment, particularly in the regions most affected.

Gatchalian highlighted that the agency has prepositioned over 3 million boxes of family food packs ahead of Crising, with production ongoing at the DSWD's main disaster hubs, including the NROC and the Visayas Disaster Response Center in Mandaue City, Cebu. While immediate relief is a priority, the DSWD is also ready to provide financial aid to support affected families in their recovery efforts.