Bohol placed under state of calamity due to Odette damage —Gov. Yap

The province of Bohol was placed under a state of calamity on Friday after Typhoon Odette's devastation, Governor Arthur Yap said.

Yap signed Executive Order No. 65 declaring such state.

Odette left "countless families homeless," Yap said in the EO.

The Bohol Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office said the typhoon has also left buildings, establishments, government facilities and infrastructure, communication facilities and power lines "severely damaged."

Bohol was under Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal No. 4 on Thursday when Odette hit. 

Yap on Friday said it was like Super Typhoon Yolanda all over again, and even their first responders — the police, military, and disaster risk reduction officer as well as their families — were affected.

The governor has appealed for immediate assistance for his constituents after Odette left a trail of massive destruction in the province.

Bohol was among the eight provinces which were left totally without electricity after Typhoon Odette damaged transmission lines as it crossed the Visayas and Mindanao, the Department of Energy said on Friday.

President Rodrigo Duterte on Friday said he would visit the provinces ravaged by Odette to see the condition of the people and overall situation in the areas.

“I’m flying tomorrow to the area, also maybe I would hit Leyte, Surigao and if there is time [in] Bohol and the day after I will try to visit Cebu then dito sa eastern side of the islands,” Duterte said in a press briefing.

Vice President Leni Robredo on Friday visited typhoon-hit communities in Bohol to provide relief and assess the situation in the area. —KG, GMA News