In a poignant tribute, various local government units across Eastern Visayas have declared a suspension of government work and school classes on November 8, 2024, marking the 11th anniversary of the devastating Super Typhoon Yolanda. This decision allows residents to engage in memorial activities, reflecting on the tragedy that claimed thousands of lives in 2013.
Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez emphasized the importance of this day for the community to mourn and remember the over 2,000 lives lost in the city alone. He stated, “The city of Tacloban acknowledges the deep impact of this disaster on our community and solemnly marks the anniversary of Typhoon Yolanda.”
Executive orders were signed by mayors across the region, including in Leyte province’s towns such as Palo, Tanauan, and others, as well as in Eastern Samar, Samar, and Southern Leyte. These orders were issued in anticipation of a proposed law that would establish November 8 as a holiday throughout the six provinces of Eastern Visayas.
The House of Representatives had previously passed a bill in 2019 to designate November 8 as “Yolanda Commemoration Day,” but a similar bill from 2017 remains pending in the Senate.
Tacloban City has organized a series of commemorative events for this year’s anniversary, including Holy Masses at significant sites like the shipwreck in Anibong district and the mass grave at Basper village’s Holy Cross. Other planned activities include wreath-laying, blessing ceremonies at the mass grave and Yolanda marker, a service caravan at a relocation site in Suhi village, and candle lighting ceremonies.
Super Typhoon Yolanda first struck Guiuan town on November 8, 2013, while many were asleep, and went on to make six landfalls that day. The official death toll from Yolanda stands at 6,300, with the majority, 5,902, occurring in Eastern Visayas.