From Leyte: 3K evacuees arrive in Cebu

CEBU, Philippines - Almost 3,000 victims of super typhoon Yolanda in Leyte arrived in Cebu yesterday.

This was the largest group of evacuees that arrived in Cebu and are currently accommodated in different evacuation centers in the cities of Cebu and Lapu-Lapu.

Onboard Philippine Navy’s Dagupan 551 vessel, over 2,800 individuals arrived at the port of the Naval Force Central before noon yesterday, after almost 24 hours of voyage from the Tacloban City port on Thursday.

The scarcity of food, the damaged workplaces, and fear for their safety, were among the reasons cited by the victims in their decision to leave their hometowns.

Josefina Lumbres, 61, said that even after the super typhoon, she never thought of going somewhere else. She shared that she initially decided to remain in her residence in Barangay 110, Otap and would somehow manage to rebuild her residence.

“Ayaw talaga naming ng pamilya ko na umalis, pero mahirap doon at pagdating ng gabi, may takot sa dibdib mo. May mga NPA na daw nakapasok, pumapasok sa bahay, pumapatay at nang-ra-rape pa, kaya nga mga lalaki na lang natira doon ngayon,” said Lumbres, a storekeeper.

She cited an incident related to her by her sister-in-law living in Phase 6, V&G Subdivision were a group of men allegedly burglarized a house and killed the residents and even raped the female members of the household.

The military had earlier said though that there were no actual reports of the said incidents.

“Sinisiguro na lang namin ang kaligtasan. Kahit halos lahat sa amin, hindi namin alam kung anong gagawin namin sa lugar na aming lilipatan, sige na lang kesa palagi kaming natatakot,” a teary-eyed Lumbres said.

Lumbres said that after staying for one night in Cebu, she and her relatives will proceed to Butuan City to stay in the house of another relative.

As per record of the Philippine Navy yesterday, most of the evacuees are bound for Manila and Cebu while the rest are in the other parts of the country, even in Bohol, which was recently struck by a killer earthquake.

Yesterday, the Lapu-Lapu City government, led by Mayor Paz Radaza, welcomed the evacuees and offered them free food, medical check up, and evacuation centers in Barangay Gun-ob, Looc, and Babag for those who have no relatives elsewhere.

“We will let them feel welcomed and that we are here for them,” said Radaza.

Some of the evacuees will also be accommodated in  evacuation centers in Cebu City, as arranged by Mayor Michael Rama.

Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Mar Roxas said there were 275,000 families in Leyte who were affected by the killer typhoon, but not all of them are leaving the province.

Asked if Leyteños should really consider leaving the place, Roxas, in an interview, cited the lack of water supply, food, and basic services there.

“So sa mga may option, lilikas muna sila, but ang nandito, we assure them that security and humanitarian forces are here for them,” he claimed.

For now, the government is working on cleaning Tacloban City and extending the distribution of relief goods to areas outside the city since roads are already passable. —/ATO (FREEMAN)