Nock-Ten leaves, but darkness and destruction remain

Bicol region, in the eastern Philippines, is limping back to life after having been plunged into darkness by the deadly Typhoon Nock-Ten, also known as Nina. Power and communication lines in region were cut and hundreds of millions of dollars in crops and infrastructure were decimated by the killer typhoon, which packed gale force winds of up to 240kph, according to meteorologists.

One town alone in the province of Albay saw up to 10,000 houses completely destroyed. The few bank ATM machines that still work in cities like Naga saw serpentine queues.

Congressman Joey Salceda, who represents the 3rd district of Albaym had appealed for help from the local and international community to help speed up aid and repairs to badly damaged infrastructure.

It could take weeks before power could be restored in the badly-hit provinces of Camarines Sur and Albay.

An official of local power cooperative Casureco, Caroline Yorobe, appealed to residents to help their overwhelmed workers clear debris left by the typhoon to speed up the rehabilitation of power lines.

“We need everyone’s cooperation, especially the local residents to help clear typhoon debris, so power will be restored in weeks, instead of months.”

source : gulfnews