Ving Mosquera, nurse at the Culasi District Hospital and daughter of a municipal administrator, said that their whole town was cut off from the power grid after electric poles were toppled by more than 300-kph winds brought about by supertyphoon Yolanda.
“Until now we don’t have (cellphone) signal and power there,” she told Inquirer over the phone last Friday while she was in Iloilo.
Mosquera said the town’s three island villages have yet to receive relief goods.
At least 40,537 people were affected by the typhoon in Culasi town. More than 10,000 houses were damaged.
Children couldn’t return to school because many buildings, including those used as evacuation centers, were damaged, she said.
“The houses made from light materials were totally damaged,” she said, adding that those made of concrete had roofs ripped off and windows broken by the typhoon.
Because of the extent of damage on infrastructure, Mosquera said the local electric cooperative could take one to two months to restore electricity in their town.
While the town prepared for possible flooding, they did not expect the strong and relentless wind and rainfall.
“[The onslaught of the typhoon] started at around noon (last Friday). By 1 p.m., the typhoon hit Antique and power was immediately out. Communication lines were also down. The winds were so strong. It was like that, non-stop, until 5:30 p.m.,” she said.
Four fishermen, who were unfortunately out at sea when the typhoon struck, were admitted to their hospital. Mosquera said their 8 companions were still missing.