Devastation in Leyte 'overwhelming' – Mar Roxas

"Like matchsticks." This was how Interior Secretary Mar Roxas described houses in Leyte that were destroyed when Typhoon Yolanda slammed into the Visayas on Friday.

 

In a televised interview with Pia Arcangel Saturday, Roxas said virtually no structure made of light materials in Leyte was able to withstand the strength of the typhoon, which packed maximum sustained winds of around 315 kilometers (195 miles) an hour.

It was the strongest typhoon in the world so far this year and one of the most intense to ever make landfall.

 

"Halos lahat ng dwellings-- mga barong-barong, bahay-- up to 1 kilometer inland from the shore wasak. Walang nakatayo. Lahat ng [mga bahay made of] light materials wasak, like matchsticks na natumba at nakakalat lang," Roxas said.

 

The Interior secretary has been in Tacloban City, Leyte with Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin since Thursday to monitor the situation in the province that was forecast to suffer the brunt of typhoon Yolanda's strength.

 

Roxas described the devastation he witnessed in Leyte as "overwhelming," and said he has already relayed the dire situation faced by the residents to President Benigno Aquino III over the phone.

 

"Ang sinabi ko kay Presidente, walang kuryente, walang tubig, walang walang cellular [signal], walang komunikasyon. Yung regional headquarters ng PNP (Philippine National Police), nawasak rin," he said.

 

Roxas said Tacloban airport was left in ruins after being submerged during the storm surge.

 

"Umabot hanggang sa bubong [ng airport] yung tubig. Imagine yung entire NAIA under water hanggang sa bubong. Ganoon kalala ang damage. Pumasok yung tubig sa airport. Tapos, after about an hour and a half, nag-recede na rin," he said.

 

The secretary noted, however, that the road from Tacloban airport to Tacloban city had been opened to traffic as by Saturday evening.

 

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) has said airports in Tacloban, Kalibo, Roxas and Busuanga in Palawan will remain closed until further notice.

 

Roxas said the national government is mobilizing all resources to quickly provide aid to residents in the affected provinces. — Xianne Arcangel/JDS, GMA News