MANILA: The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center has delivered tens of thousands of shelter kits and portable sanitation equipment to survivors of the June earthquake that struck the island of Mindanao in the Philippines.

A large part of southern Mindanao was affected by the magnitude 7.8 offshore Sarangani quake that struck on June 8. It was one of the most destructive to hit the Philippines in recent years. 

At least 106 people were killed and 1,300 others injured, with more than 1.6 million people displaced by the temblor that also destroyed nearly 20,000 houses and damaged 109,000 more.

KSrelief launched the project to support the more than 94,000 survivors who remain displaced. 

“The family kits (and other assistance) that were given to the victims of the earthquake here in Sarangani was very, very timely,” Loreto Cabaya, regional director of the Philippine Department of Social Welfare and Development, told Arab News on Tuesday.

A great deal of aid was provided at the time of the earthquake but those who were affected still needed more, he said.

The KSrelief aid comprises 15,500 hygiene kits, 15,500 shelter kits and 150 pieces of portable sanitation equipment, the Saudi Press Agency reported. 

The assistance was “very much needed,” Cabaya said, as southern Mindanao was also hit with deadly flash floods and landslides in July, compounding the struggles of the quake survivors. 

The aid was distributed during a handover ceremony held earlier this month in Glan, a municipality in Sarangani province, which was one of the worst-hit areas.

“The humanitarian assistance provides much needed support to the residents of Barangay Mudan, whose homes and livelihoods were severely affected by recent calamities,” Glan’s Vice Mayor Victor James Yap Jr. said

“It also highlights the importance of humanitarian partnerships in extending timely and essential assistance to communities in times of need. 

“The local government of Glan expresses its sincere gratitude to KSrelief and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for their generosity in helping the people of Glan rebuild and recover.”