Navy ships, aircraft to assist in 'Odette' relief
MANILA, Philippines — The BRP Ang Pangulo, the presidential yacht converted into a hospital ship, is sailing for Siargao in Surigao del Norte with relief supplies as the navy deploys its ships to assist areas affected by Typhoon Odette.
Ang Pangulo, now a 10-bed hospital ship, joins more than a dozen navy ships that have been ordered to help with Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Response operations, the navy said in a release.
Seven sealift vehicles have been tasked with transporting goods as well as people stranded by the typhoon while two patrol ships will provide command and control and eight other vessels will provide general support.
Navy ships Tarlac, Bacolod City, Antonio Luna, Andres Bonifacio, Iwak, Agta and Ivatan are being sent to to augment relief efforts in Cebu, Northern Mindanao and Palawan. They will be joining ships already stationed in those areas.
"BRP Gregorio Velasquez, BRP Hilario Ruiz, and BRP Rafael Paragas are already in Northern Mindanao and have completed several relief sorties," the navy also said.
Naval Forces Eastern Mindanao has also been sorting, repacking and transporting relief goods for distribution to barangays near Littoral Monitoring Station Surigao, it said in a separate release.
"NFEM aims to provide immediate relief assistance to typhoon-affected families by handing out food packs and other basic necessities. In addition, the command continues to monitor the situation on the ground and conducts its own relief operations," it also said.
Four navy aircraft have also been placed on alert and are ready to conduct aerial surveys, rescue and limited transport in support of the ships.
'Odette', the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year, left at least 208 dead and caused widespread damage to homes and infrastructure in the central and southern Philippines.
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