'Odette' thrashed P585.8-M of infrastructure — DPWH

MANILA, Philippines — After typhoon Odette (international name: Rai) swept through the Philippines days before the Christmas season, it left in its wake nearly P600 million worth of infrastructure in shambles.

As of 6 a.m. Wednesday, Odette’s total damage to infrastructure stood at P585.8 million, the Department of Public Works and Highways said in a statement. There are still some regions that are yet to report to DPWH, so the agency may release a bigger figure in the next days as more data comes in.

DPWH's monitoring revealed that Region 4-B, or Mimaropa, sustained the worst damage so far, with P231.9 million of infrastructure destroyed by the deadly typhoon.

Palawan, located in Region 4-B, was not spared from the powerful winds of the strongest typhoon to hit the country this year. Odette knocked over transmission lines, cut power supply and swept away houses in the province.

Besides that, Eastern Visayas (Region 8) was left with P173.4 million worth of damaged infrastructure. Region 13, or the Caraga Administrative Region, incurred P145 million in destroyed public works infrastructure. Western Visayas (Region 6) has a P35.5 million bill in trashed public infrastructure.

Odette packed wind speeds of 195 kilometers per hour when it ravaged parts of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

The DPWH reported it has reopened 34 roads, crucial for the delivery of relief efforts to areas wading through the devastation.

Likewise, the DPWH has disbursed P100 million for clearing and response operations in Western, Central, and Eastern Visayas, Northern Mindanao, and Caraga region.