Abra businesses likely to reopen by Friday, says DTI

ABRA, Philippines — Business establishments here that were forced to close shop on Wednesday due to the magnitude -7 earthquake are expected to resume operations by Friday at the latest,  according to the provincial Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

Magnitude 7 earthquake jolts Abra, other parts of Luzon

According to DTI Abra officer-in-charge-provincial director Francis Pacio , there are  3,000 to 6,000 business establishments in the province, 60 percent of which are in Bangued town.

“Yesterday, businesses closed for safety purposes. But then, we are hoping that today until this afternoon or tomorrow at the latest, when the aftershocks weaken or lessen, they will reopen,” he told INQUIRER.net in Filipino.

However, Pacio stressed that business establishments must be inspected by structural engineers and be declared safe before they could reopen.

Inspection has already started, according to the OIC.

Meanwhile, Pacio said they would conduct profiling of businesses in the province to assess what assistance would best suit their needs.

Nonetheless, there are existing programs available for affected businesses.

“We have regular programs that we could convert into assistance programs. For example, we have livelihood kits that could help them recover,” Pacio said in Filipino.

“We can also assist them in some other ways, like in marketing and training that can help them  recover (from the adverse impact of the earthquake on them and their businesses),” he added.