by FFE PH News Staff

Exactly one month after super typhoon Yolanda slammed Tacloban City and the rest of the Visayas region, two of the city’s most famous attractions are ready to open.

Sto. Nino Shrine in Tacloban City

The Sto Niño Shrine and the Heritage Museum announced they will be opening for tourists on Sunday. Commissioner Richard Amurao of the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) said the reopening will help TaclobanCity recover from the devastation of the storm.

The reopening of Tacloban’s beloved destinations also serves as a symbol as a greater part of the city, along with the other cities and municipalities hit by the storm, still remains in ruins. However, signs of rehabilitation are slowly trickling into the regions, bringing back life as roads are cleared, fuel and phone signals are made available and the airport on the road to resume flights.

The Sto Niño Shrine along Real Street is one of the very few structures which survived the six-metre storm surges brought about by what has been considered the strongest typhoon to ever make landfall in history. Although the church was muddied and its glass windows were shattered, its priceless treasures stayed safe from harm. Thankfully, the shrine escaped the looting that occurred days after the typhoon passed.

The PCGG lauded the shrine’s personnel for keeping the shrine safe and cleaning it up even though their families have also been affected by the typhoon.