Residents of Barangay Ermita in Cebu City get water from a firetruck on Saturday afternoon, December 18. | Pegeen Sararaña
CEBU CITY, Philippines – Several towns in southern Cebu, like Argao, Dalaguete and Alcoy, remained isolated as of Saturday, December 18, or two days since Typhoon Odette (international name: Rai) barrelled the island.
Odette knocked out power lines, trees and telecommunications towers in Argao, a first-class municipality located approximately 88 kilometers south from here.
Mayor Allan Sesaldo described the town as “ground zero”, saying Odette was the worst typhoon to hit there.
“I think Argao is ground zero. 60 to 70 percent of the houses were really damaged,” said Sesaldo in Cebuano.
Sesaldo, in an interview with reporters on Saturday at the Capitol, reported two fatalities in Argao.
Both victims – a male farmer and a female who is still a minor – got crushed by uprooted trees.
The farmer was outside trying to save his carabao from the typhoon while the girl was hit by a tree near the house where she was staying.
Sesaldo also said their town remained inaccessible as clearing operations are still ongoing in major roads.
The mayor visited the Capitol on Saturday to personally ask help from Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia who, in turn, will be sending food packs to the affected families in the southern town.
He added that Odette’s destruction could have been worse if they have not implemented precautionary measures before its arrival.
Argao has over 20,000 residents. Roughly around 15,000 were subjected to evacuation, said Sesaldo.
“We implemented forced evacuation for those who were living in the shorelines,” he continued.
The neighboring towns of Dalaguete and Alcoy also remained impassable, the Cebu Caritas Inc. of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese here has reported.
“Carcar City, Sibonga, Argao, and Aloguinsan are heavily devastated because of (redacted) Typhoon Odette,” Caritas said in a statement sent to the local media.
Caritas also stated that they received reports of two deaths from Aloguinsan town in southwest Cebu, both crushed by fallen roof debris.
They also reported that the road from Barili to its neighboring town of Dumanjug in southwest Cebu remains inaccessible.
“As of 2:58pm, there are 14,056 families from 13 parishes that are affected. Essential needs as of the moment are food, bottled drinking water, unleaded for GenSet, banig, flashlights and hygiene kit,” they said.
“The Cebu Caritas, Inc. is now trying to reach out severely affected parishes for damage assessment,” they added.
The entire province of Cebu is under a state of calamity due to Odette, a Category 5 – Super Typhoon, that made landfall in Carcar City last Thursday, December 16.
Odette was the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year.
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