Typhoon Odette leaves parts of Visayas and Mindanao with no water, electricity

Many parts of Visayas and Mindanao, including the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, and Butuan, continue to suffer from water and electricity shortages after Typhoon Odette (internationally known as Rai), hit the Philippines on December 16, 2021.

Families have taken their plastic bottles and containers to the streets and grocery stores in hopes of securing potable water for their homes. To address the shortage, local authorities are deploying firetrucks to distribute water to the affected areas.

“People from Cebu and Mandaue have no choice but to endure long lines just to get clean drinking water,” reports Ligaya Munez, World Vision Humanitarian Emergency Affairs (HEA) manager in the Philippines and currently doing assessment in communities in Cebu. “Some residents also find it hard to access their most basic needs because of impassable roads.”

Electricity and communication lines in Visayas and Mindanao remain limited after the typhoon uprooted trees, houses, and electrical posts. Adonis Casinillo, World Vision staff in Mindanao, shares that assessment in Surigao is hampered because of these limitations. “There is still no water, no power, and no signal in the area,” he says.

Water, electricity, impassable roads, and shelter are likewise the problems in Bohol areas, shares Gerosa Beros, World Vision staff in Bohol, after they visited several communities in the province like Ubay, one of the severely affected villages.

Meanwhile, World Vision HEA Director Ajab Macapagat who have been travelling to Leyte via Sorsogon route for almost 14 hours noticed the long queues of vehicles that need to get across to the Samar-Leyte islands. “Most vehicles are lining up on the road and not at the port. Only those who are reserved can get in the port,” Macapagat shares in his text messages.

In the aftermath of Typhoon Odette, World Vision in the Philippines is on the ground to respond to the emergency as several provinces in southern Philippines are left with destroyed homes and thousands of families displaced. World Vision has more than 11,000 supported families in the provinces of Leyte, Samar, Bohol, Cebu and Negros.

As of December 20, 2021, the National Disaster Risk Reduction Council (NDRRMC) reports more than 123,522 families or 488,463 individuals, including children, are displaced inside or outside evacuation centers.