AHEAD of the arrival of Typhoon Odette (international name: Rai), the Department of Social Welfare and Development Central Visayas (DSWD 7) has prepared nearly 24,000 family food packs for those who may be affected by the storm in the region.
As of Tuesday, Dec. 14, it had prepared 14,911 food packs for Cebu, 6,658 food packs for Bohol and 2,073 food packs for Negros Oriental.
For the non-food items, the DSWD 7 said it had prepared 2,434 hygiene kit packs, 41 dignity kit packs, 2,005 kitchen kit packs, 448 sleeping kit packs, 958 family clothing kit packs, 14,647 pieces of malong, 126 mats and 500 modular tents.
The department said standby funds as of Dec. 13 amounted to P752,250.
The DSWD 7 also announced that it had placed on standby three Quick Response Teams with some 150 members each trained to provide disaster relief and humanitarian services including mental health and psycho-social support and camp coordination and management.
As of 8 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 15, Odette had moved westward over the Philippine Sea east of Mindanao, and was forecast to make landfall in the vicinity of Caraga or Eastern Visayas by Thursday afternoon or evening, and then cross Central and Western Visayas before emerging over the Sulu Sea on Friday, Dec. 17.
Weather bureau Pagasa said Odette may reach a peak intensity of 155 kilometers per hour before making landfall.