Over the last two decades, Marino has been assigned and deployed in several areas that have experienced the most difficult disasters. Now on his 20th year with Smart Communications, Inc., Marino faced one of the greatest challenges after Super Typhoon “Odette” wreaked havoc in Visayas and Mindanao—including Marino's beloved hometown, Bohol.

Among Marino's team's main duties is to carry out network maintenance and restoration. As Cluster Head, Marino has led the repair of damaged communication infrastructures in storm-battered areas.

“The morning after the super typhoon, we had to answer the greater call of duty. We needed to address the concerns of the community who were desperate to contact their families after the typhoon,” says Marino.

In the earlier weeks post-Odette, Marino and his team had to leave their homes and families at dawn to perform their network restoration duties all day. By the time they were able to finish, it was already nearly midnight. Pitch-black roadways due to toppled down electric poles also made it difficult for the engineers to travel to their next destinations and on their way back home. 

While on the field, Marino saw how people traveled to areas where signal was available to communicate with their relatives outside of Bohol to seek help.

“As team leader, I made sure to encourage my teammates to do their best while also ensuring that they can still take care of their own families,” he said. “Though we are also victims of the typhoon, we also have a greater responsibility to fulfill to our fellow Bol-anons. Seeing them able to reconnect with their families outside Bohol after Odette makes all our efforts and sacrifices worth it. We are all doing the best we can for the province.”

PLDT and Smart continue to operate Libreng Tawag and Libreng Charging stations across Bohol, and the rest of Visayas and Mindanao to reconnect residents in areas severely impacted by Super Typhoon Odette.

More PLDT and Smart engineers are also working to fully restore communications facilities in affected areas amid ongoing commercial power restoration and clearing operations.