TUGUEGARAO, Cagayan—Australian copper and gold miner OceanaGold Philippines Inc. played Santa Claus to at least 500 typhoon victims here, extending relief operations in the province.
OceanaGold, which runs the Didipio mine in Nueva Vizcaya province, brought Christmas gifts to indigenous families in Enrile and Solana towns. Many of them lost their houses and livelihood during the onslaught of Super Typhoon “Lawin” last October.
David Way, OGPI general manager, said they conducted their gift-giving operations in Lawin Norte in Enrile and Furagi in Solana town where typhoon victims needed the most help.
OceanaGold “is always ready to extend assistance to the needy” especially the typhoon victims in Cagayan province, which was hardest hit by “Lawin,” Way added.
“We are privileged to have the opportunity to help. We are one with the provincial government of Cagayan in their efforts to swiftly normalize the lives of the people who were heavily affected by the typhoon,” he said.
OceanaGold was one among the earliest responders for relief assistance to the typhoon-affected families in Cagayan, including Peñablanca town. The company also sent its Emergency Response Team to clear debris and felled trees on the roads.
OceanaGold’s ERT earned a special recognition, the Kalasag Award, from the Office of Civil Defense in Region 2 for its excellence in disaster risk reduction and management, its humanitarian efforts in local and national emergency responses, and its efforts in mitigating climate change.
In 2014, OGPI sponsored a P3.3-million housing village for victims of Typhoon “Yolanda” in Bantayan, Cebu.
OceanaGold also distributed P4 million worth of gift packs to residents of Barangay Didipio in Kasibu, Nueva Vizcaya and 29 neighboring villages.