By John Rey Saavedra | Philippine News Agency
CEBU CITY – The provincial government of Bohol will ramp up the distribution of relief goods to localities hit by Typhoon Odette as more donations from Manila arrive at the Panglao Airport on Friday (Dec. 31), Governor Arthur Yap said.
Onboard Philippine Air Force C-295 aircraft, the provincial capitol received assorted relief goods, sacks of rice, boxes of mineral water, food packs, a solar panel, six tents, and three generator sets.
In his Facebook (FB) post, Yap listed in detail all the latest donations which came from Manila.
The governor also cited the soldiers from the Philippine Army’s 47th Infantry Battalion based in Bohol for unloading the donations for distribution to localities still reeling from the impact of Typhoon Odette, two weeks after it devastated parts of the Visayas and Mindanao.
Meanwhile, the second batch of seven-vehicle loads of equipment from Meralco and 18 personnel arrived at Tubigon Port on Friday.
The Manila-Cebu shipment was sponsored by the Philippine Navy, commending also Lite Ferry Shipping for the assistance in booking for the Cebu-Tubigon trip of the Meralco team.
“These will be additional equipment and personnel to further help in restoring our power lines in Bohol. Thank you once again, Meralco,” Yap said in a statement.
In another FB post, the governor also commended the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) for assisting in the clearing operations in the municipalities of San Miguel, Talibon, and Trinidad.
He said a standby medical team from the MMDA was also deployed in these towns during the clearing of debris.
On Dec. 30, Yap visited a car-mounted water treatment facility lent by Asia Brewery Corp. to the province to be used in treating water in areas where potable water is badly needed due to lack of power supply.
“This is a big help to our brethren who are victims of Typhoon Odette because this mobile water treatment has a continuous two-hour operation which can produce 1,000 liters per hour”, Yap posted in the vernacular.
In an update released by the capitol’s Barug Bohol relief operations, the provincial government has distributed 92,288 food packs containing five kilos of rice, eight canned goods, and a bottle of water in 48 towns.
It also reported that 62,005 food packs from the Department of Social Welfare and Development were distributed to 29 towns; 11,446 food packs from Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. in seven towns; and 2,088 hot meals from Philippine Red Cross in six towns.
The Naval Forces Central (NFC), through the Naval Task Force 50 conducted a sealift mission for the relief goods bound for Cataban and Calituban, island villages of Talibon town.
The NFC statement said the BRP Enrique Jurado (PC371) delivered a total of 1,460 food packs to the said island barangays cut off from the mainland after Typhoon Odette.
Sailors from the Philippine Navy worked side by side with the 47th Infantry Battalion in loading and unloading the donated goods.
The naval patrol craft also provided fresh water to residents, the NFC said. (PNA) -ag
