Cebu City

Cebu folk left dazed in the wake of Typhoon Odette

Ryan Macasero, John Sitchon

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Cebu folk left dazed in the wake of Typhoon Odette

Cebu City residents clean up debris in the aftermath of Typhoon Odette after its onslaught midnight of December 17, 2021. Jacqueline Hernandez/Rappler

Jacqueline Hernandez/Rappler

Falling trees, debris made rescue difficult, say officials of Barangay Guadalupe, Cebu City's most populous barangay

CEBU CITY, Philippines  – Some residents of the Visayas’ center of commerce and surrounding cities waited for three hours in the dark before Typhoon Odette (Rai) made landfall, around 10 pm on Thursday, December 16.

Seven persons died in Barangay Maguikay, Mandaue City when a structure collapsed around 1:30 a.m.

In humble homes of  Barangay Guadalupe, Cebu City’s most populous barangay, Odette ripped roofs from homes, drenching families in the dead of night.

In the  buildings at the IT Park near Apas, the combination of Odette’s powerful winds and a waterspout smashed panels of window glass. That terrifying combine also uprooted many of the young trees in the green spaces between buildings of the IT Park.

The IT Park in Apas, Cebu City shortly after a water spout hit it around 10 p.m. on December 16. (Photo by Patrick Lewis Arboneda)

By mid-morning of Friday, December 17, many areas of Metro Cebu remained without power, potable water, Internet service or basic telecommunications connections.

Long lines of vehicle owners crammed the few gasoline stations that were able to open. Those seeking more comfortable lodgings than their homes were turned away by hotels also struggling to deal with the lack of power. 

Cebu folk left dazed in the wake of Typhoon Odette

As of 7:45 p.m. of December 17, most parts of Metro Cebu were still without power.

Terrified folks

At  the evacuation center in Barangay Guadalupe, which has a population of 70,000, Sitio Andres resident Jay Caballes said he had been going around trying to find a power source to charge his mobile phone.

Naa pa [mi balay], atop lay wala na gyud. Naa pa’y mga bungbung, atop, pero gamay na lang nahabilin atop. Maihap na lang. Ang uban, nangabali,” he told Rappler.  

(We still have a house, the roof blew off though. The neighbors still have roofs, but only a few. You can count them. Other roofs were broken.)

In the Bisaya language of Cebu, Caballes said his family had not received aid yet.

Young children got drenched when winds tore the roofs off their homes,  Analy Gomez, Caballes’ sister-in-law  said. An older sister’s house, she added, was crushed by a felled tree.

Gomez appealed for help in getting roofing material for affected the barangay.

Cebu folk left dazed in the wake of Typhoon Odette

“We don’t know how we’re going to rise from this,” Guadalupe Barangay Councilor Apol Ross Enriquez told Rappler 

“We have so many evacuees we’re trying to accomodate. We had to transfer some last night and transfer more today because their homes were destroyed,” Enriquez said in Bisaya. 

He said around 1,000 evacuees were brought to the barangay gym and to the Banawa Elementary School.

Guadalupe SK Chairman Jan Jay Casanal said rescuers had to pause at the height of Odette’s fury because falling trees were blocking roads.  

“Our rescuers couldn’t get through. Aside from that, it was risky because the roofs were flying; that’s why they could only be rescued early in the morning,” Casanal added.

Cebu folk left dazed in the wake of Typhoon Odette

Cebu City Mayor Michael Lopez Rama said local government staff were still busy doing clearing operations and trying to collate data of loss of lives and property.

Rama asked for private sector help in feeding thousands of evacuees and reassured frustrated residents that help was coming.

“We need your understanding,” the mayor said in a mix of English and Bisaya.

He promised the city government would hold daily command conferences to fast track the recovery of Cebu City. – with reports from Lorraine Ecarma and Art Lubiano/Rappler.com

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Nobuhiko Matsunaka

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Ryan Macasero

Ryan covers social welfare for Rappler. He started at Rappler as social media producer in 2013, and later took on various roles for the company: editor for the #BalikBayan section, correspondent in Cebu, and general assignments reporter in the Visayas region. He graduated from California State University, East Bay, with a degree in international studies and a minor in political science. Outside of work, Ryan performs spoken word poetry and loves attending local music gigs. Follow him on Twitter @ryanmacasero or drop him leads for stories at ryan.macasero@rappler.com