Odette forces evacuation of over 18k residents in Guiuan

More than 18,000 residents were preemptively evacuated in Guiuan, Eastern Samar due to the threat of Typhoon Odette.

Flash floods were reported in several parts of Guiuan on Thursday as Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal No. 2 was raised over Eastern Samar.

The local government ensured that minimum health standards would be observed in all evacuation centers to prevent COVID-19 spread.

Odette made its sixth landfall in Bien Unido, Bohol at 7:30 p.m., with maximum sustained winds of 185 kilometers per hour and gustiness up to 255 kph.

On Wednesday, the Guiuan municipal government started forced evacuations early as Odette approached typhoon status, fetching residents around 7 am.

Rodrigo Jay Miralles from the Mines and Geosciences Bureau warned that certain areas of a total of 3,124 barangays in Leyte, Southern Leyte, Eastern Samar, and Northern Samar are at risk for landslides and flooding.