Siargao residents, tourists flock to the airport to board mercy flights

Tourists and residents trooped to the airport to board mercy flights out of Siargao Island which was battered by Typhoon Odette last week.

In Chino Gaston's Tuesday "24 Oras" report, one of the tourists Jara Cancio, was trying to catch a flight at the airport after all of the villas and resorts on the island were damaged by the typhoon.

"But what's good about it was yung mga locals were helping us," Cancio also said.

Other residents were also seeking to board chartered flights so they could stay with relatives in other areas after they were left homeless by the typhoon.

Some tourists also vowed that they would bring international help when they return to Siargao.

Odette exited the Philippine Area of Responsibility over the weekend after causing devastation in parts of the Visayas and Mindanao.

To help calamity-stricken victims, President Rodrigo Duterte vowed to raise P10 billion in assistance though he had said earlier that the government was out of funds. — Consuelo Marquez/DVM, GMA News