(UPDATE) '3 airports, 14 seaports damaged by Yolanda completely rehabilitated'

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) - The government has completed the rehabilitation of three airports and 14 seaports in areas struck by typhoon Haiyan (local name Yolanda) to speed up recovery in those places, a senior government official said yesterday.

Department of Transportation and Communications Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya Jr. said the airports that have been completely repaired include the Kalibo International Airport, Roxas Airport and Busuanga Airport.

The Kalibo and Busuanga airports cater to tourists visiting the country's renowned beaches, while the Roxas airport serves over 200,000 passengers per year as a main gateway to the whole island of Panay in central Philippines, he said.

The Tacloban Airport in central province of Leyte, one of the most damaged transport facilities following the typhoon, has been undergoing rehabilitation, he said. It could now serve small aircraft, he added.

Meanwhile, those 14 ports that have been completely rehabilitated are found in the provinces of Biliran, Negros Occidental, Palawan, Sorsogon, Albay, Southern Leyte, and Cebu, Abaya said.

Other airports that have been ongoing rehabilitation works are those in Ormoc in Leyte and Guiuan in Eastern Samar, he said, adding that 44 more seaports are either undergoing rehabilitation works or in the pipeline.

Typhoon Haiyan, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Yolanda, was one of the strongest tropical cyclones ever recorded, which devastated portions of Southeast Asia, particularly the Philippines, on Nov. 8, 2013. It is the deadliest typhoon on record, killing at least 6,300 people.