UTILITY posts bound for the typhoon-hit province of Camarines Sur rolled off the truck, causing monstrous traffic in Calauag, Quezon on Wednesday morning, November 11, 2020.
Police said the incident happened around 5 a.m. along Maharlika Highway in Barangay Doña Aurora in Calauag. The road was rendered impassable, except for small vehicles.
Truck driver Nestor Sadocos, who was injured in the incident, said the cable that held the concrete posts together broke.
He said the electric posts were intended to replace the posts that were toppled by Typhoon Rolly (Goni) in Tiagon, Camarines Sur.
As of November 11, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said there was still no electricity in 212 cities and municipalities.
The provinces of Albay, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur and Catanduanes experienced blackout. Catanduaes was almost flattened by the typhoon.
Typhoon Rolly was the strongest typhoon in the world for 2020. It hit Catanduanes with winds of 225 kilometers per hour (kph) and gustiness of up to 280 kph.
Over 500,000 families or over two million people in Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon), Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan) Bicol region, Eastern Visayas, Cordillera Administrative Region and National Capital Region (NCR) were affected.
Over 20,000 families or over 82,000 individuals were displaced.
The NDRRMC said 25 people died while six others were still missing.
A total of 170,773 houses were damaged by the typhoon. Nearly P13 billion worth of infrastructure were damaged while about P5 billion worth of agriculture products and structures were destroyed.
Meanwhile, Senator Christopher Lawrence Go said he will propose to President Rodrigo Duterte the creation of a special task force to ensure the immediate recovery and rehabilitation of the areas affected by Typhoon Rolly.
"Isa-suggest ko kay Pangulong Duterte, and I have discussed with general manager Escalada of the NHA, na tulad po ng ginawa nila sa Yolanda na magkaroon ng task force for rehabilitation, gumawa rin tayo ng Task Force Rolly kasi 'di naman po Catanduanes lang ang tinamaan dito," Go said in an interview in Catanduanes.
He said this is also to ensure that the delivery of services to the affected population by concerned government agencies are well-coordinated.
Go said this includes the provision of additional local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund equivalent to one percent of their respective internal revenue allotment (IRA) shares, particularly in Calabarzon, Mimaropa and the Bicol region.
"Nagkausap na kami ni (Budget) Secretary Avisado. Hihingi lang kami ng approval kay Presidente, ‘yun pong aking recommendation na maglaan ng one percent po para sa budget," he said.
"Kasi ang five percent po na calamity funds ngayon ay ubos na po. Nagamit na po (laban sa Covid-19) because we’re under the state of national emergency right now," he added. (SunStar Philippines)