Linemen refused entry in Odette-hit property

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines — Property owners are refusing entry to linemen tasked to repair power cables in areas devastated by Super Typhoon Odette in the southern part of Negros Occidental, authorities reported yesterday.

Rayfrando Diaz, provincial administrator, said some landowners, especially in the municipality of Ilog, cited pending disputes over right-of-way in refusing entry to linemen.

Diaz appealed to landowners not to delay the restoration of power in typhoon-hit areas, saying this is for the welfare of everyone, especially the calamity victims who have been suffering for several days.

To alleviate the demand for power in the province’s sixth district, the provincial government sent 18 generator sets for charging of the survival equipment such as phones and flashlights of the local disaster teams.

Spare generator sets from hospitals and evacuation centers from other areas will also be sent to southern Negros, Diaz said.

The Western Visayas police sent generator sets to six police stations in the sixth district that were hit by Odette.

The Negros Occidental Electric Cooperative has restored power in some areas in Candoni, Cauayan, Ilog, Hinobaan and Kabankalan City. It has yet to restore power in Sipalay City.

The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines said its linemen have restored power in the northern part of Negros Occidental, but electric cooperatives have yet to complete the  repair of  their distribution lines.