DSWD chief Rex Gatchalian said the mobile kitchens will be used to provide hot meals during disasters. Jervis Manahan, ABs-CBN News

MANILA — The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Friday unveiled several disaster response vehicles that would be deployed in areas hit by future calamities. 

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Among those were 16 mobile kitchens to be deployed in all regions, as well as mobile water treatment facilities capable of processing floodwater to potable water.

"Isa sa pinakamataas na marka ng administrasyon ang disaster response, pero syempre sa mabilis na pagtugon ng pangangailangan ng taumbayan, dapat may sapat na equipment," Social Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian said during the ceremonial launch at the National Resource Operations Center (NROC) in Pasay City.

(One of the highest mandates of an administration is disaster response. And to respond the the needs of the people quickly, we need enough equipment.)

The mobile kitchens were designed to provide hot meals to internally displaced persons (IDPs) and families during emergencies.

"Hindi pwede laging preserved food at nasa food packs lang ang kakainin nila, so nagse-set up sila ng community kitchen para fresh yung iluluto at makakatulong yung mobile kitchen para sa mga nasa evacuation center," Gatchalian said.

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(We cannot just feed them with food packs, so they set up community kitchen to feed them hot meals. Mobile kitchens can help especially those in evacuation centers.)

"Ready na sila, nakagayak na sila, ipapadala na sila sa mga regions natin. Pag in action yan, makikita nyo sabay sabay yan in action," Gatchalian added.

(These are all ready to be deployed to our regions. You would eventually see all of them in action.)DSWD says the mobile water treatment truck can process floodwater and seawater and transform them to be potable water at a rate of 2,500 liters per hour. Jervis Manahan, ABS-CBN NewsThe mobile water treatment and water tanker trucks are designed to transport large quantities of water to evacuation centers or in areas affected by water shortages.

The facilities can treat flood and sea water to make them potable water for those families afflicted by calamities.

Earlier in 2024, the DSWD also launched mobile command centers for disasters that had already been used during the eruption of Mount Kanlaon.

The kitchens and mobile water treatment units are designed to complement them.

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