ILOILO CITY – Super typhoon “Yolanda” (international name “Haiyan”) was an eye opener for disaster preparedness and disaster response, an official of the Iloilo provincial government said.

AERIAL photo shows the devastation of super typhoon ‘Yolanda’ in Estancia, Iloilo on November 13, 2013. (Tara Yap)

“We learned a lot from Yolanda, but it changed our policies on handling disasters,” said Iloilo Provincial Administrator Raul Banias on the 10th anniversary of the howler on Wednesday, November 8, that battered Eastern Visayas and pummeled Iloilo on its way out of the country on November 8, 2013.

“In fact, disaster preparedness has now been mainstreamed – from the national level down to the grassroots,” Banias said.

“During Yolanda, we were caught flat-footed,” recalled Banias who also served as provincial administrator at that time.

Banias said the provincial government prepared relief goods for distribution to towns in northern Iloilo but these could not be delivered to recipients since roads were blocked by fallen trees and electrical posts.

“We had to use bolo knives because we did not even have chainsaws at that time,” Banias said.

The provincial government has since procured equipment and other necessary items to boost disaster preparedness.

Gov. Arthur “Toto” Defensor Jr. created the Provincial Civil Defense Office (ProCiD Office) as a 24/7 operations center for disasters and other emergencies.

Yolanda badly affected northern Iloilo as well as other towns in the province.

According to the Iloilo Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, Yolanda killed 217 individuals and displaced 870,846 people in the province. The tropical cyclone totally damaged 92,345 homes and partially damaged 83,692 in Iloilo.