Typhoon Odette, the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year, has claimed at least 75 people so far.
To date, over 300,000 people have fled their homes and beachfront resorts as Typhoon Odette has ravaged the southern and central regions of the archipelago. The storm has knocked out communications and electricity in many areas, ripping off roofs and toppling concrete power poles.
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On his Facebook page, Bohol governor Arthur Yap said that mayors on the devastated island had reported 49 deaths in their towns. Yap added that 10 people were still missing on the island and 13 were injured after the storm smashed into the country Thursday as a super typhoon packing wind speeds of 195km per hour.
Thousands of military, police, coast guard and fire personnel are being deployed to assist in search and rescue efforts in the worst-affected areas. A Philippine Navy ship carrying goods and other relief would depart for Bohol on Monday, Yap said, after he earlier declared a state of calamity on the island. Efforts to deliver water and food to devastated islands have been ramped up as well.
There has also been widespread destruction on Siargao, Dinagat and Mindanao islands, which bore the brunt of Odette when it slammed into the Philippines.
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Aerial photos shared by the military show severe damage in the Siargao town of General Luna, where many surfers and holidaymakers had flocked ahead of Christmas, with buildings stripped of roofs and debris littering the ground.
Dinagat Governor Arlene Bag-ao said Saturday the damage to the island’s landscape was “reminiscent if not worse” than that caused by Super Typhoon Yolanda in 2013.
Typhoon Yolanda was the deadliest cyclone on record in the country, leaving more than 7,300 people dead or missing.
