BY GLENDA TAYONA, DOMIIQUE BANAGA and IME SORNITO
ILOILO City – Across Western Visayas, people living near seacoasts, riverbanks, flood- and landslide-prone areas evacuated from their homes to government shelters as storm “Odette” (international name: Rai) became a super typhoon yesterday.
Preemptive evacuations actually began as early as Tuesday evening following warnings from the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) that “Odette” would be unleashing torrential rains and strong winds.
Indeed, around 11 o’clock last night, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) issued a “red rainfall warning” to Iloilo, Capiz, Aklan, Antique, Guimaras and Negros Occidental.
Various local government units temporarily suspended work and ordered employees to go home.
The region is in the projected path of “Odette” (beginning last night, Thursday, until this Friday afternoon). Yesterday afternoon it was already packing sustained winds of 260 kilometers per hour with gusts of over 300 kilometers per hour as it slammed the country’s eastern seaboard.
As of 11 a.m. yesterday, at least 5,000 individuals (over 2,000 families) in 65 barangays across Region 6 moved to safer grounds, data from the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC) showed.
As of 8 o’clock last night, parts of Negros Occidental were placed under Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal No. 4 (very destructive typhoon-force winds) – La Castellana, Pontevedra, Hinigaran, Moises Padilla, Isabela, Binalbagan, Himamaylan City, Kabankalan City, Ilog, Cauayan, Candoni, Sipala City, and Hinoba-an.
In Capiz province, 4,583 individuals moved to evacuation centers. Roxas City had the most number of evacuees at 1, 684.
In Guimaras, 230 families evacuated while in Iloilo City, 11 barangays evacuated their residents (a total of 445 families). Iloilo City’s Mayor Jerry Treñas did not discount the possibility of ordering forced evacuations if necessary.
Meanwhile, the Caticlan, Tabon and Tambisan seaports in Aklan temporarily shut down, thus sea vessel trips were canceled (Caticlan-Mindoro and Batangas, Boracay-Caticlan via Tabon Port and Tambisan Port, and Boracay-Caticlan via Tabon port and Tambisan port).
A total of 703 passengers got stranded in various ports, according to the RDRRMC.
NEGROS OCC.
Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson ordered local government units to implement preemptive evacuation of persons and families in flood-prone areas
The governor added that frontliners, especially those assigned in hospitals, “should remain in their workplaces because they need to be there and there’s a need for their services.”
Lacson also alerted mayors about flashfloods and landslides and ordered the clearing of waterways.
“Regional offices of national government agencies have assured us of immediate assistance in case needed,” Lacson said.
The provincial government aims to achieve zero human and livestock casualty.
ILOILO PROVINCE
OnThursday afternoon, Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. issued Memorandum Order No. 26 suspending work in the provincial government, except those in departments with functions and responsibilities on disaster response (they should have skeletal workforce) – Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO), Provincial Disaster Defense Cluster, Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office (PSWDO), Provincial Engineering Office (PEO), General Services Office, and Provincial Health Office.
On the other hand, preparations of 43 local government units actually started on Tuesday.
Defensor also made sure there’s enough medicines, facemasks and disinfectants in evacuation centers.
As for classes, online and/or face-to-face, Defensor left it for the mayors to decide.
ANTIQUE
Gov. Rhodora Cadiao stopped work at the provincial capitol, too (from Thursday to Friday_ except for offices in-charge of emergency responses like the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office, PDRRMO, and PEO.
Yesterday, the PDRRMO was closely monitoring coastal municipalities in the southern portion of the province as “Odette” (international name: Rai) inches closer. They could suffer from storm surges.
In Anini-y town, it deployed an emergency response team composed of seven personnel.
A storm surge is the abnormal rise in seawater level during a storm, measured as the height of the water above the normal predicted astronomical tide.
GUIMARAS
Gov. Samuel Gumarin issued an executive order suspending work at the capitol and in all public and private offices, and suspending classes (online and face-to-face) in schools “until the province will not be included in the areas under Tropical Wind Cyclone Signal advisory of PAG-ASA.”
Meanwhile, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) suspended the trips of all seagoing vessels.
Still on Guimaras, preemptive evacuation covered 85 families from Sitio Unisan, Barangay Guiwanon, Nueva Valencia town.
Loren Gallarda, head of the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO), said the evacuation started on Wednesday. The families moved to Cabalagnan National High School and Cabalagnan Elementary School in Barangay Cabalagnan which was adjacent to Guiwanon.
CAPIZ
Gov. Esteban Evan Contreras’ Executive Order No. 30 suspended work, too, and classes. But he stressed the suspension does not apply “to all emergency, health, and other offices and establishments whose services are deemed essential to peace and order, disaster management and response, health and medical, search and rescue, and other essential services…”
“Odette” made its first landfall in the country yesterday in Siargao Island, a popular tourist and surfing destination, then it was expected to travel through the Visayas.
More than 20 people live in the Visayas, according to 2020 official figures./PN
