Zamboanga village hit by landslide

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / August 28, 2009) – A landslide occurred on Friday on a village in the southern Philippines, but there were no reports of injuries or casualties.

The landslide in the village of Quiniput left half of a road linking other villages impassable. Rocks from the mountain rolled down the slope, blockading the road.

It was unknown what caused the landslide. (Mindanao Examiner)

Search continues for missing landslide victims in southern Philippines

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / May 19, 2009) – At least 45 people were dead and missing following a landslide at a gold rush site in the southern Philippine province of Compostela Valley, security officials said on Tuesday.

Officials said army soldiers and government militias were sent to help in the search for more than a dozen people reported missing since Monday’s landslide in the village of Napnapan in Pantukan town.

“Heavy rains loosened mud and boulders and the landslide killed at least 26 people and 19 others are still missing. We are searching for them,” Captain Rosa Maria Cristina Manuel, a spokeswoman for the Army’s 10th Infantry Division, told the Mindanao Examiner.

Manuel said at least 16 more were injured in the landslide. More than two dozen houses were either buried or destroyed by the landslide, she said.

She said Maj. Gen. Reynaldo Mapagu, commander of the 10th Infantry Division, ordered more troops in the area to help in the search and rescue operation.

“Soldiers from the 2nd Scout Ranger Battalion are helping rescuers in the area. Government militias are also helping search for those missing,” she said.

Philippine troops were deployed on a remote mountain town in Mindanao to help in search and rescue operation after a landslide buried small houses, officials said Saturday.

Late last year, at least a dozen people, among them children, were also killed in landslides in Monkayo and Maco towns, both gold rush areas in Compostela Valley.

Army soldiers were also sent in the province in the past to help rescuers search for landslide survivors. Many small scale miners put up thatched houses from near where they are digging for gold.

Authorities have previously banned miners from putting up houses and structures on mountain slopes because of the dangers posed by mudslides. Squatters have mushroomed in the area over the years despite similar incidents in the past. (Mindanao Examiner)

Troops search for landslide survivors in southern Philippines

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Nov. 22, 2008) – Philippine troops were deployed on a remote mountain town in Mindanao to help in search and rescue operation after a landslide buried small houses, officials said Saturday.

At least 6 people have died from the landslide brought about by heavy rains since Thursday in Monkayo town in Compostela Valley province. Several people were also reported missing.

“Troops are in the area and helping in the search for survivors,” said Lt. Col. Kurt Decapia, a spokesman for the Army’s 10th Infantry Division. “Lt. Col. Manny Sequitin, commander of the 66th Infantry Battalion, is leading the search in Monkayo town.”

Among those killed in the tragedy were children. Villagers were also helping soldiers in the search for survivors. It was unknown how many people were missing, but many are still unaccounted in the area worst hit by the landslide.

In September, eight people were killed in a landslide that buried houses on another mountain enclave called Maco in Compostela Valley.

Army soldiers were also sent to the town to help rescuers search for survivors after heavy rains loosened boulders and mud that buried at least two dozen houses in the village of Masara.

Like Monkayo town, Maco is a known gold-rush area in the province, where small scale miners, put up thatched houses from near where they are digging for gold.

Authorities have previously banned miners from putting up houses and structures on mountain slopes because of the dangers posed by mudslides. Squatters have mushroomed in the area over the years despite similar incidents in the past. Ten people were also killed by landslide last year in the area. (Mindanao Examiner)

Flash Floods Trap Villagers In Zamboanga City; Tremor Jolts Mindanao

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / September 11, 2008) – Monsoon rains triggered flash floods on Thursday on a remote village in Zamboanga City in the southern Philippines, officials said.

An earthquake also jolted Zamboanga City and other parts of Mindanao on Thursday morning, although there were no reports of damages to structures. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said the tremor originated from Indonesia and felt in Mindanao.

But officials said the rampaging flood waters in Bunguiao trapped villagers. There have been no reports of injuries or casualties, however, seven houses were already under water and that roads are impassable, said Nestor Atilano, the village chieftain.

“The flood water is rising and roads have become impassable. The flash flood was triggered by days of continuous rains,” Atilano said.

It was not immediately known how many families were displaced by the flood.

Geologists also discovered a huge crack on the village of Tulungatung also in Zamboanga City and warned residents to stay away from the area because of possible landslide.

The Mine and Geosciences Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources immediately declared the area around it as “prohibited zone.”

Villagers near the crack had been evacuated to safer areas and geologists were conducting further studies on the fissure. Residents have reported strange noise every time rain waters sip through the crack.

In July, a portion of the Zamboanga City highway collapsed and geologists blamed weeks of torrential rains that eroded the soil and led to the collapse of the road. A landslide in June in Zamboanga City also killed a pregnant mother and her child in the hillside village of Maasin during the typhoon Fengshen.

Last week, at least two dozen people were buried alive after two landslides struck the mountain town of Maco in Compostela Valley province. (Mindanao Examiner)

Compostela Landslide Death Toll Now At 20

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / September 9, 2008) – Philippine authorities said a total of 20 people had died from a landslide that struck the mining town of Maco in Compostela Valley province in Mindanao.

Monsoon rains the past days loosened mud and boulders that cascaded down the slopes in the village of Masara at the weekend.

Seven more villages - Mainit, Tagbaros, Elizalde, Panibasan, Teresa, New Barili and Limbo - are also in danger of landslides and authorities ordered residents, mostly small-scale gold miners, away from slopes.

Among those who died was the village chieftain of Masara, Jovencio Anquera and his two daughters. (Romy Bwaga)

8 Killed In Southern Philippines Landslide

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / September 7, 2008) – At least 8 people were killed and dozens had been reported missing after a landslide buried houses on a mountain town called Maco in the southern Philippine province of Compostela Valley, military reports said on Sunday.

Soldiers were sent to the town to help rescuers search for survivors from Saturday’s landslide that destroyed at least two dozen houses in the village of Masara. Heavy rains the past days loosened mud and boulders that cascaded down the mountain slopes, trapping villagers inside their houses, the reports said.

Rescuers have pulled out at least eight bodies from under the debris and that more than a dozen people had survived from the landslide. More than 100 villagers had been evacuated to safety for fear that continues rain could trigger more mudslides in the area.

Male villagers, the reports said, had volunteered to help rescuers search for those who are still missing, but the lack of equipment was hampering the operations.

Many of those who were helping in the search were using only their bare hands to dig through debris, others used makeshift shovels. Maco is a known gold-rush area in the province, where small scale miners, put up thatched houses from near where they are digging for gold.

Authorities have previously banned miners from putting up houses and structures on mountain slopes because of the dangers posed by mudslides. Squatters have mushroomed in the area over the years despite similar incidents in the past. Ten people were also killed by landslide last year in the area. (With reports from Romy Bwaga and Juan Magtanggol)

Walo, Nalibing Ng Buhay Sa Compostela Valley Sa Mindanao

DAVAO CITY (Mindanao Examiner / September 7, 2008) – Marami ang hinihinalang nasawi sa bayan ng Maco sa Compostela Valley na kung saan ay nalibing sa landslide ang mga kabahayan dahil sa patuloy na pagbuhos ng ulan sa Mindanao.

Sa inisyal ng ulat ng militar ay walong bangkay na ang nakuha mula pa nuong Sabado at mahigit sa isang dosenang iba ang nailigtas mula sa mga bitak-bitak na lupa at putik.

Ngunit marami pa ang inulat na nawawala at hindi mabatid kung sila’y nakaligtas o nalibing rin ng buhay. Tinatatayang mahigit sa dalawang dosenang bahay ang nabaon sa lupa ng gumuho ang malaking bahagi ng kabundukan sa nasabing bayan.

Mahigit sa 100 mga residente na ang nagsilikas sa takot na gumuho pa ang mga lupa sa Maco. Dikit-dikit ang mga kabahayan sa nasabing bayan dahil sa isa ito sa sinabing “gold rush area” sa lalawigan.

Karamihan sa mga nasa Maco ay mga minero at ilang ulit na rin silang sinabihan ng mga awtoridad na lumikas sa lugar dahil sa nakaambang panganib ng landslide.

Ilang ulit na rin nagkaroon ng landlside sa lalawigan, ngunit mas matindi ang tawag ng salapi na makukuhan sa mga minahan kaysa kaligtasan ng marami. (Mindanao Examiner)

Hundreds Flee As Landslide Hit Zamboanga Village

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / July 3, 2008) – Hundreds of villagers were evacuated Thursday after a landslide hit a remote mountain village in Zamboanga City in the southern Philippines, officials said.

Torrential rains the past days loosened mud and boulders in the village of Muti, east of Zamboanga. There were no reports of casualties or injuries in the landslide, but many houses were either destroyed or damaged and more than 80 families have fled from the area and sought safe refuge in government schools, a village leader, Kalid Yausin, said.

Last month, a pregnant mother and her child were killed after a landslide buried their house in the hillside village of Maasin. Heavy rains triggered by typhoon Fengshen had loosened soil that buried the house of the Candado family.

The typhoon, whose local codename Frank, had left a trail of deaths and destruction in the Philippines. The death toll across the country could reach to hundreds after a 24,000-ton ferry, the Princess of the Star, with nearly 750 aboard capsized off Sibuyan Island in Romblon province as the typhoon battered central and northern Philippines before heading towards Taiwan. (Mindanao Examiner)

Pregnant Mom, Child Buried Alive In Zamboanga Landslide

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / June 24, 2008) – A pregnant mother and her child were killed after a landslide on Tuesday buried a house in Zamboanga city in southern Philippines.

Heavy rains triggered by typhoon Fengshen last week had loosed soil that buried the house of the Candado family near a hillside village called Maasin. “The house was destroyed by the landslide and a pregnant mother and her child were buried alive,” said village chieftain Misael Bernardo.

Bernardo also appealed on radio for equipment to dig through debris and recover the victims. “We need help here. The house is buried and there are two people inside, a pregnant mother and her child,” he told the dxRZ Radyo Agong.

Witnesses said more than half of the house was buried in boulders and mud and villagers dug though debris with their bare hands to retrieve the victims, but failed to save them.

The woman’s husband was working at a construction site when the landslide occurred shortly before 9 a.m. The bodies were recovered three hours later. The woman, Liza, was five months pregnant and her child, Chubby, was only six years old.

The typhoon, whose local codename Frank, left a trail of destruction in the southern Philippines where at least 2 dozen people were reported killed and injured and tens of thousands displaced by flash floods.

But authorities said the death toll across the country could reach to hundreds after a 24,000-ton ferry, the Princess of the Star, with nearly 750 aboard capsized off Sibuyan Island in Romblon province as the typhoon battered central and northern Philippines before heading towards Taiwan.

At least 155 people have been confirmed dead from the fury of the typhoon.

Rescuers have found several dozens of survivors and cadavers from the stricken ferry, owned by Sulpicio Lines. The government has suspended all Sulpicio’s ferries until a maritime investigation into the sinking of the Princess of the Star is finished.

Initial maritime reports said the ferry’s engine malfunctioned and that the captain of the vessel had told passengers to abandon the ship. The captain was among those missing and presumed dead. (Mindanao Examiner)

Apat Patay Sa Baha, Landslide Sa Mindanao

DAVAO CITY (Mindanao Examiner / Mar. 23, 2008) – Apat na katao umano ang nasawi, kabilang ang isang sanggol, at halos isang dosenang iba pa ang nasaktan o sugatan matapos na magkaroon ng landslide sa lalawigan ng Davao del Sur.

Sanhi umano ng malakas na ulan at pagbaha sa mga nakalipas na araw ang naging dahilan sa pagguho ng mga bitak ng lupa sa bayan ng Santa Maria. Hindi naman agad mabatid kung gaano karaming pamilya ang apektado ng pagbaha at landslide.

Unang nagbabala ang mga awtoridad na mag-ingat sa baha o landslide ang mga naninirahan sa mga gulod at tabing-ilog dahil sa patuloy na pagbuhos ng malakas na ulan.

Bagamat walang bagyo sa Mindanao ay bahagi umano ng tail-end ng isang cold front ang sanhi ng pagulan.

Nuong nakaraang lingo ay unang binaha ang lalawigan ng Maguindanao at maraming lugar doon ang lubog sa tubig. Madalas bahain ang maraming lalawigan sa central Mindanao sa tuwing malakas ang ulan. (Mindanao Examiner)

Landslide Bury Miners In Southern Philippines

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Nov. 19, 2007) – At least three people were killed and several more missing Monday after heavy rains loosed mud and boulders on a village in southern Philippines, military and police reports said.

It said a mining tunnel collapsed due to the landslide in the town of Placer in Surigao del Norte province. Other reports said as many as five people, mostly miners of the Manila Mining Corp., were killed.

The military said it deployed soldiers to help rescuers find those missing.

The exact number of people missing is still unclear, but rescuers were digging through debris inside the collapsed tunnel to find possible survivors.

Many areas in southern Philippines were flooded because of heavy rains the past days. A cyclone also destroyed about two dozen thatched houses on a remote village in Zamboanga City.

Weather experts said an active low area east of northern Mindanao has developed into a tropical depression.

Although its maximum sustained winds is only 55 kilometers per hour, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration warned residents in low lying areas and near mountain slopes of possible flashfloods and landslides.

It also alerted residents living near coastal areas for big waves generated by the tropical cyclone. (Mindanao Examiner)

7 Dead In Landslide In Southern Philippines

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 06 Aug) – At least 7 people were killed when a landslide Monday buried six houses in the mountain town of Maco in Compostela Valley province, south of the Philippines, authorities said.

Authorities said three people were also missing and believed among those buried by mud and debris loosened by days of heavy rains.

Villagers were helping rescuers search for the bodies and that among the dead were children.

The area is a known gold-rush site in the southern Philippines and many have died in the past because of landslide and collapse of mining tunnel. (Mindanao Examiner)

Man Buried In Landslide, Survives But In Critical Condition

CEBU CITY (Mindanao Examiner / 13 Jun) – One villager was injured in a landslide triggered by heavy rains in the central Filipino province of Cebu, officials said on Wednesday.

Alvin Santillan, administrative officer of the Cebu Disaster Coordinating Council, said the landslide occurred this week in the mountain village of Budla-an.

He said Bernie Antolijao, 32, remains in critical condition at the North General Hospital. The man was buried in mad when rescuers pulled him out barely alive.

Last week, two picnickers – Genevive Beduya and her cousin Christy Beduya -- died and that more than a dozen others injured after a landslide at mountain resort in Carmen town.

Rains have loosed soil and mad in many areas in Cebu Island. (With a report from Juley Reyes)