The Philippine Rural Electric Cooperatives Association Inc. said it created a task force to extend assistance to members whose power distribution lines were damaged by typhoon Odette.
PHILRECA’s Task Force Kapatid, organized in the aftermath of typhoon Odette, mobilized 23 teams consisting of 230 line workers and 21 vehicles spread out across Regions 6, 8, 9, 10 and CARAGA.
More electric cooperatives in the Visayas and Mindanao expressed intention to join the task force to speed up the rehabilitation of downed power distribution systems in the typhoon-ravaged regions.
The task force leaders reported they were having difficulty coordinating with some electric cooperatives because of damaged communication facilities.
PHILRECA president and party-list representative Presley De Jesus said he was tapping certain government agencies such as the Office of Civil Defense to reach out to electric cooperatives whose communication systems appeared to have bogged down.
“As confirmed by our Task Force Kapatid commanders, some teams have been deployed in Region VIII already,” said lawyer Janeene Depay-Colingan, executive director and general manager of PHILRECA.
“Sadly, there are ECs who have no available communications at the moment as telecommunication infrastructures are also heavily affected and remained non-operational at this time,” De Jesus said.
“While pursuing other options, we have authorized some of our people to physically go and inspect those areas with no communications and see what other assistance is needed,” De Jesus said.
The task force wants to have a complete assessment of the needs and other vital information about the affected ECs prior to deployment of the field workers.
Meanwhile, the One EC Network Foundation, the corporate social responsibility arm of the One EC-MCO Movement, is consolidating information on the impact of the typhoon to EC employees and member-consumer-owners preparatory to providing the necessary assistance.
It said those wanting to participate in the humanitarian endeavor may get in touch with PHILRECA’s secretariat through e-mail or its social media pages.