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News and photo by The Bohol Chronicle

A tornado locally known as "buhawi" devastated at least 82 houses in four coastal barangays in Jagna town as affected residents could hardly scamper for safety when the whirling and rumbling  wind swooped down  their houses in less than two minutes last Friday noon.

Had the tornado hit  nighttime when coastal residents were asleep, then it could have brought about a lot of fatalities, according to Jagna Mayor Fortunato “Bec-Bec” Abrenilla, Interviewed by the Chronicle a few hours after the incident. he described the catastrophe as unexpected although he was still thankful that the tornado cost no life and injured no one among his local constituents.
He estimated the damage at no less than P5 million.

Gov. Edgar Chatto, who was bound for Duero and Guindulman towns that day, was still in the town of Lila when the disaster hit Jagna at  around 11 o'clock Friday morning.

The governor made a quick stop in Jagna to do an on-site inspection and instructed the LGU to do the necessary action in addressing the immediate needs of the victims.

Jagna Emergency and Medical Rescue Unit (JEMRU), a localized version of TARSIER 117, immediately dispatched its unit five minutes after the tornado smashed the coastal houses.  Mayor Abrenilla expressed elation on the quick arrival of TARSIER 117 teams dispatched from Tagbilaran City.

Unified forces of the barangay and town officials, provincial officials led by the governor himself, staff of the Provincial Social Welfare Office, Red Cross, and the Provincial Disaster and Risk Reduction Management Council (PDRRMC)  raced to the affected areas to distribute relief goods to the victims.

The governor was still at the disaster scene past 10 Friday evening together with the local officials distributing relief goods. He was live on DYRD from Jagna when interviewed over the top-rated Tagbilaran By Night program last Friday,  Chatto disclosed that a total of 82 houses in four barangays interconnected in the town's coastal areas were either totally or partially destroyed by the tornado.

Barangay Can-Upao, home of the well-known “Calamay” delicacy, suffered great damage with a total of 40 houses  destroyed. It was followed by Brgy Bunga-Mar with a total of 39 houses being destroyed. Brgy Cantagay recorded two houses being destroyed while brgy Ipil recorded one house destroyed.

Chatto added that a total of 13 units motorized pump boats and unverified number of pump boats without engines were also destroyed.

It was the first time that residents in the area experienced a devastating tornado according to the elders interviewed by the governor. Most of the victims were families of fishermen leaving near the sea.

Chatto also congratulated the barangay officials and the JEMRU for their exemplary preparedness as tested during the onslaught of the tornado.

For his part, Abrenilla said that the tornado was indeed strong as it uprooted several coconut trees and lifted several motorized pump boats before they were smashed in the ground.

The tornado could have cost lives of the residents had it occurred in the evening. During the incident, most parents and their children in the affected areas were in the town gymnasium, together with town officials, who celebrated the culmination of the “nutrition month”.

MALACANANG PALACE ASSISTANCE COMING

Meanwhile, President Benigno Aquino III, instructed Chatto last Friday evening that the national government is ready to extend assistance to the victims through the office of DSWD Secretary Dinky Soliman.

The governor said that the provincial social welfare office is still in the process of calculating the total damage inflicted by the tornado before a final report will be submitted to Soliman's office.
Chatto also assured the victims that the provincial government will assist them in the reconstruction of their wrecked houses.

For his part, Abrenilla also assured financial assistance of up to P5,000 per household to be taken from the calamity fund of the town.

Although there is still no final report on financial damage, Abrenilla initially estimated the damage to be more or less P1.3M excluding losses in e agricultural products.


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