The provinces of Biliran, Eastern Samar, Northern Samar, and Southern Leyte remained without power on Wednesday morning, while internet services were reported to have slowed down after transmission facilities were damaged by the 6.9 magnitude earthquake that struck Bogo City in Cebu on Tuesday night and reverberated across many areas in the Visayas and was felt as far as the Bicol Region.
Several local governments-including Paranas in Samar and the cities of Baybay and Tacloban in Leyte-opened charging stations for mobile phones to help residents cope with the power outages.
The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) reported that 27 of its power plants sustained damage, resulting in the loss of 1,444.1 megawatts (MW) from the Visayas grid. The NGCP identified the following transmission lines that remain out of service:
Daanbantayan (Cebu)-Tabango (Leyte) 230kV L1 and L2 (Lines 1 and 2)
Daanbantayan-Compostela (both in Cebu) 230kV L1 and L2
Tabango-Kananga (Leyte) 230kV L1 and L2
Kananga-Ormoc 230kV (Leyte) L1
Ormoc-Babatngon (Leyte) 138kV L1 and L2
Babatngon (Leyte)-Paranas (Samar) 138kV L1 and L2
Paranas-Calbayog (Samar) 138kV L1 and L2
Ormoc (Leyte)-Maasin (Southern Leyte) 138kV L2
Isabel-Tongonan (Leyte) 138kV Line
Isabel-Pasar (Leyte) 138kV Line
Pasar-IASCO (Leyte) 138kV Line
The NGCP said, however, that several transmission lines had already been restored, including the Ubay (Bohol)-Maasin (Southern Leyte) 138kV Line (energized at 4:01 a.m.); the Ormoc-Maasin 138 138kV L1 (energized at 4:18 a.m.) and the Ormoc-Isabel 138 kV Line (energized at 5:11 a.m.).
Power transmission services in the rest of the Visayas grid were reported to be under normal operations. The grid covers Panay, Negros, Cebu, and Bohol, using submarine cables and land transmission lines.
Meanwhile, classes were suspended in several parts of Eastern Visayas on Wednesday in the wake of the powerful earthquake.
Among the areas where classes were canceled due to safety concerns were Catbalogan City in Samar; Ormoc City and the Leyte towns of Isabel, Matag-ob, Palompon, Villaba, Leyte, and Tabango; Macrohon in Southern Leyte; and the entire province of Biliran, which is still reeling from the devastation of Typhoon ‘Opong’ that pummeled the province on September 26.
In Tacloban City, no official suspension was declared by the city government, but several schools opted to cancel classes, with parents choosing not to send their children amid fears of aftershocks.
Local government units immediately conducted rapid damage assessments.
In Ormoc City, engineers declared the city hall building safe after a post-quake inspection.
In Isabel town, the Philippine Phosphate Fertilizer Corp. (Philphos), the country’s leading fertilizer producer, assured the public that its ammonia tanks and pipelines at the Leyte Industrial Development Estate were secure. Its management emphasized that safety valves are in place that automatically shut down operations during emergencies such as earthquakes.
The quake also triggered landslides in some areas of Leyte province, including Barangay Abijao in Villaba town, a vital access route to nearby Palompon, and in parts of Leyte, Leyte town.
As of 10:30 a.m., electricity had not been fully restored in Leyte, although supply returned to some areas in the province’s second district and in Tacloban City./coa