At least 1,700 persons from Batangas towns affected by the restive Taal Volcano are staying in various evacuation centers as the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) continuously assesses the damage to households.

On Sunday night, DSWD Secretary Rolando Bautista visited temporary shelters in the towns of Laurel and Agoncillo, which are both inside the 14-kilometer radius danger zone.

As of Saturday, 867 families were recorded to have left their homes, according to DSWD data.

Of the total, 416 families or 1,712 individuals are currently staying in 16 evacuation centers in the province. The rest opted to stay with relatives or friends.

According to a statement, the DSWD has so far delivered 500 family tents and 1 million pieces of face masks to Laurel town and Batangas City.

On July 2, 500 modular tents and 5,000 family food packs (FFP) were sent to the Batangas Sports Complex.

The DSWD also sent 1,500 FFPs to Agoncillo and 2,000 to Laurel.

The Batangas provincial government reported receiving 1,000 hygiene kits, 4,000 family kits, 215 sleeping kits, 48 boxes of coffee, and 72 family tents from the DSWD.

Taal Volcano is still under Alert Level 3 and with the possibility of explosive eruption as of Monday, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology. (PNA)