December 26, 2021
2021, TYPHOON ODETTE, BOHOL
BOHOL HAS BLEAK CHRISTMAS AFTER ODETTE
By Joy Rojas
Days after Super Typhoon Odette (international name Rai) unleashed her fury on parts of the Visayas and Mindanao, Tzu Chi Foundation volunteers were on the scene to assess damages and provide initial support to thousands of displaced families in the storm-battered regions.
In Bohol, where volunteers stayed from December 20 to December 23, locals were at a loss for what to do following the unthinkable destruction to their province, a popular tourist destination. As of December 26, Odette has claimed 378 lives, 96 of them from Bohol. Damages have been pegged at an estimated P5 billion.
“Our house is gone, even the structure is gone. The only thing left is the cemented floor,” says 20-year-old Feljoy Torreon of Tinangnan, Tubigon, Bohol. “Everything is destroyed, even our means of livelihood, our fishing boats. We don’t know how we’re going to start again.”
“I invested in a new house near the sea. Now it’s wrecked by the storm,” laments 42-year-old Reynold Cosare. The father of four and tourist driver who survived the magnitude 7.2 earthquake that rocked Bohol in 2013 considers Odette a worse catastrophe. “I didn’t expect it. Our TV, ref, everything, I wasn’t able to save them. I didn’t think it was going to be that bad.”
Neither did Jubelle Tuvilla, who stayed home with his wife while their three young children took cover in the evacuation center. “We didn’t think it would be that strong,” says Tuvilla of the typhoon. With the clothes on his back as his only material possessions, the 51-year-old fisherman is all mixed emotions at this point. “Sad, I don’t know if I should cry,” he says. “I’m so stressed, I don’t know what will happen to us because our house collapsed. Everything is gone.”
Before they can even think of moving forward, all underscore the immediate need for basic necessities.
“We badly need electricity. We badly need potable water. We badly need food items, of course,” says Delia Lasco, a Tzu Chi volunteer based in Bohol. “Clothes, especially for those whose houses were inundated. We badly need housing materials, especially roofing materials. But perhaps rescue tents will do for the meantime, and we don’t have those tents right now.”
“The power situation is so bleak because so many electric posts fell, and water is also a problem. Without power, there’s no water pump and there’s no filtering system for the waterworks to work with,” avers Joven Uy, another Bohol-based Tzu Chi volunteer.
“Ours is a very bleak Christmas because of this typhoon, and [we] hope and pray that we be spared from another typhoon of similar intensity as what we have just experienced.
“Thank you, Master Cheng Yen, for remembering us and sending people to survey our situation. We really need Tzu Chi right now to help the people recover.”
Help Tzu Chi Foundation help our brothers and sisters in the Visayas get back on their feet after this horrific disaster. Your pledge will go a long way in providing for their food, water, and other basic needs.
Kindly send your donations to any of the following accounts. Please screenshot your deposit with your name so we can send you your donation receipt.
Account Name: Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation Philippines Inc.
METROBANK Account Number: 163-3-163-07190-9
Account Name: Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation Philippines Inc.
BDO Account Number: 011-9-7800-180-0