Worst-hit Bohol needs water, generators
AT least 142 persons have died and nearly 500,000 others have been displaced as authorities scrambled to respond to the onslaught of typhoon “Odette,” the most destructive storm to hit the country this year.
Seventy-two of the fatalities were reported in the worst-hit Bohol province, said Gov. Arthur Yap who pleaded for about 250 generator sets due to disruption of power supply, caused by downed transmission lines.
“We are aware that many have been asking for water as well. As you know, our water refilling stations have not been able to operate because the province is suffering a blackout for two days already,” he said.
Yap said electricity providers reported they can partially restore power in a week but they need more than two weeks to fully restore power in the province.
“We cannot survive in the next two to three weeks by just waiting for transmission lines to be repaired. This being the case, I am asking for your help to urgently source 15-horsepower, single-phase generators so we can distribute this to Bohol’s 48 LGUs (local government units), for the use of their local water refilling stations,” said Yap.
He said they also need additional 200 to 250 units of 15-horsepower, single-phase generators to help restore water supply.
“Supplying the people drinking water is critical and relying on water bottle distribution is merely a stop-gap measure which we will not be able to sustain for long,” Yap also said.
Yap said some sectors have already volunteered to bring generators and boxes of water to Bohol.
“I am making a call especially to government, LGU and private groups, who have water refilling capabilities on trucks to have them sent over to Bohol,” Yap also said, adding donors may check with his Facebook page and other social media accounts of the province how they can help.
He appealed oil companies to increase deliver of fuel to the province, noting that increased operation of generators are “depleting our stockpiles.” He said Petron president and chief executive officer Ramon Ang has positively responded to his call.
Yap said he made the calls through his Facebook page because communication lines were also down due to Odette. “Signal and connectivity is intermittent, sporadic and sketchy,” he said.
Citing initial aerial survey over the coastal towns of northern Bohol up to Inabanga town, Yap said “it is very clear that our people have suffered greatly in terms of destroyed homes, and agricultural losses.”
“Presently, communications are still down, proof of which only 21 mayors out of 48 have reached us,” said Yap, adding four of the 21 mayors have reached out to him are requesting food assistance for their constituents.
Yap said these four LGUs — Inabanga, Loboc, Batuan and President Carlos P Garcia towns — were due to receive food packs from the social welfare department anytime yesterday. He said additional supplies will be soon provided to these LGUs by the provincial government.
He also said a Navy ship was due to arrive Bohol with goods and assistance.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said Odette has affected 181,500 families or 706,634 individuals in Mimaropa, Bicol, Western Visayas, Western Visayas, Northern Mindanao, Davao, Soccsksargen, and Caraga regions and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.
Of the number, 107,816 families or 427,903 individuals are staying in evacuation centers and 15,706 families or 60,560 individuals are outside evacuation centers.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) yesterday all tropical cyclone warning as Odette moved away from the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR) and headed towards Vietnam and China.
According to PAGASA, Kalayaan Island was the last area in Luzon placed under signal No. 1, at 5 a.m. yesterday, but it was lifted at 11 a.m.
As of 10 a.m. yesterday, Odette was some 430 km northwest of Pag-asa Island, Kalayaan in Palawan, outside the PAR.
The Camp Aguinaldo-based NDRRMC, in a situational report, reported 16 deaths in Cebu and five deaths in Negros Oriental.
Lt. Col. Arnel Solis, spokesman of the Western Visayas regional police office, reported 18 deaths in Negros Occidental, and two each in Iloilo and Guimaras.
Dinagat Islands public information officer Jeffrey Crisostomo said 10 died in the province and five are missing.
Six died in Southern Leyte, said Office of Civil Defense-Eastern Visayas regional director Lord Byron Torrecarion.
Maj. Gen. Edgardo de Leon, commander of the Army’s 8th Infantry Division, said he received reports about the death of six more persons but this has yet to be confirmed.
Surigao del Norte Rep. Francisco Jose Matugas II reported three deaths in his province. He said the people of Surigao del Norte need food. “We are trying to gather food supplies from outside of Surigao (del Norte), so we calling for help to bring food here,” he said.
The PNP Northern Mindanao reported five deaths in Misamis Oriental, two in Bukidnon, and one in Misamis Occidental.
In Dinagat Islands, Crisostomo said 90 to 95 percent of the houses in the provinces were damaged. He said the second floor of the two-storey provincial capitol building was destroyed by strong winds.
But Crisostomo said there would have been more casualties in the provinces if for the pre-emptive evacuation of residents from high-risk areas.
Crisostomo appealed for help to fully restore power and communication lines in the province.
Torrecarion said many parts of Eastern Visayas are left with no electricity, and communication lines are limited.
He said said there is a shortage of fuel in the region, thus there is a need to bring more fuel supply for the use of disaster response vehicles.
“We have started road clearing. Our number one objective is to clear the roads so that our relief operations could get through,” said Torrecarion. He said the region needs additional chainsaws for road clearing.
De Leon said Limasawa was the worst-hit town in Southern Leyte. “Many of the houses there were unroofed,” he said.
He said they have dispatched Army engineers to Limasawa town and other areas affected by the typhoon in the province to help repair damaged houses. He appealed for supplies, including galvanized iron sheets, needed in the repair.
“Power is down in the entire province of Southern Leyte. The same with communication lines are limited. We deployed Army technicians to provide VSAT (very small aperture terminal) so that the province will have internet access,” he said.
Reports from the PNP headquarters in Camp Crame said 169 died due to Odette, mostly in Central Visayas where 129 perished. Of the 1669, 22 were from Western Visayas, 10 in Caraga, seven in Northern Mindanao, and one in Zamboanga Peninsula.
The PNP said 107 were injured — 103 in Central Visayas, three in Northern Mindanao, and one in Caraga.
Fifty were reported missing, including 43 in Central Visayas. The seven others are in Caraga.
CARAVAN
De Leon said he has ordered the deployment of Blackhawk helicopters to Southern Leyte to survey all the LGUs under the province. He said many towns are not accessible yesterday due to blocked roads.
De Leon said the military is organizing a caravan, from the 8th ID headquarters in Samar to Southern Leyte. He said military trucks will be picking up supplies from donors along the way.
“We are calling on donors from other provinces of Region 8 (Eas tern Visayas) to provide (relief goods),” said De Leon, adding the people of Southern Leyte need water, food and non-food items like medicines and hygiene kits.
3rd Infantry Division commander Maj. Gen. Benedict Arevalo said soldiers are focused on clearing of blocked roads and conduct of relief operations in Western Visayas.
Arevalo said Odette devastated many parts of the region, noting that many houses there were made of light materials.
“(Our focus) is road clearing and pushing forward the relief goods and then continuing our assessment,” said Arevalo, adding they have yet to assess the extent of the typhoon’s damage in some areas. — With Noel Talacay
