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Regular-article-logo Tuesday, 19 March 2024

Massive landslide hits Philippines, 21 killed

Heavy rains caused the landslide, which buried 30 houses in Naga city in central Philippines

AP Manila Published 20.09.18, 05:31 AM
Red Cross volunteers treat a victim after she was pulled out of her house that was struck by a landslide in Naga city.

Red Cross volunteers treat a victim after she was pulled out of her house that was struck by a landslide in Naga city. Philippine Red Cross - Cebu Chapter via AP

A massive landslide buried dozens of homes near a central Philippine mountain on Thursday, killing at least 21 people and sending rescuers scrambling to find survivors after some sent cellphone text messages pleading for help.

The avalanche surged down on about 30 houses in two rural villages after daybreak in Naga city in Cebu province, Roderick Gonzales, the city police chief, told The Associated Press by telephone as he helped supervise the search and rescue. Seven injured villagers were rescued from the huge mound of earth and debris.

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Some victims still managed to send text messages after the landslide hit, Gonzales said, adding elderly women and a child were among the dead.

Nimrod Parba, a 26-year-old resident, said a relative trapped in a house beneath the rubble managed to call Thursday morning and begged to be rescued. The calls stopped, however, and the relative could not be reached hours later, Parba said.

Naga city mayor Kristine Vanessa Chiong said by telephone that at least 64 people remained missing.

“We’re really hoping we can still recover them alive,” she said.

The landslide hit while several northern Philippine provinces were still dealing with deaths and widespread damage wrought by Typhoon Mangkhut, which pummeled the agricultural region on Saturday and left at least 88 people dead and 64 others missing. A massive search was still underway for dozens of people feared dead after landslides in the gold-mining town of Itogon in the north.

Rescuers were treading carefully in small groups on the unstable ground to avoid further casualties.

“We’re running out of time. The ground in the area is still vibrating. We’re striking a balance between intensifying our rescue efforts and ensuring the safety of our rescuers,” Naga city Councilor Carmelino Cruz said by phone.

Cristita Villarba, a 53-year-old resident, told AP by phone that her husband and son were preparing to leave for work when the ground shook and they were overwhelmed by a roar.

“It was like an earthquake and there was this thundering, loud banging sound. All of us ran out,' Villarba said, adding she, her husband and three children were shocked but unhurt.

Outside, she saw the house of her elderly brother, Lauro, and his family was buried in the landslide.

“Many of our neighbours were crying and screaming for help. Some wanted to help those who got hit but there was too much earth covering the houses, including my brother’s,” she said.

Dead victims stay inside a chapel after they were recovered from a landslide as it struck homes in Naga city.

Dead victims stay inside a chapel after they were recovered from a landslide as it struck homes in Naga city. AP

More than a dozen people live in her brother’s home, mostly his family and grandchildren, she said, adding that many small houses in her community got hit.

Elsewhere in the landslide-hit community, a father and his young daughter were found dead in each other's embrace in a house, volunteer rescuer Vic Santillan said.

It’s not clear what set off the landslide, but some residents blamed limestone quarries, which they suspect may have damaged and caused cracks in the mountainside facing their villages. Villarba said a light rain stopped when the landslide hit and there was no rain on Wednesday.

The quarry nearest the landslide-hit villages was abandoned about a year ago, but a company still runs a government-authorized quarry not far away and villagers also profit from the limestone business, Angeline Templo, an assistant to the mayor, said by phone.

More than 300 villagers were evacuated for safety as search and rescue work continued, Templo said.

Naga is a coastal city with a population of more than 100,000. Cebu province was not directly hit by Mangkhut but the massive typhoon helped intensify monsoon rains in a large part of the archipelago, including the central region, where Naga city lies about 570 km southeast of Manila.

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