INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — A total of 41 people remain trapped while three others were “critically injured” following a landslide in Barangay Masara in Maco town, Davao de Oro, the military said Wednesday.
The Eastern Mindanao Command (EastMinCom) said in a statement that several buses carrying 86 employees of Apex Mines were buried in a landslide at around 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday.
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However, as of 2:15 a.m. on Wednesday, 45 people have been successfully rescued.
“Efforts continue to locate and rescue the remaining 41 individuals, as declared by Apex Mines,” Eastmincom said.
It will deploy helicopters for air evacuation of critically injured workers.
However, it said the rescue operation was halted at 12:15 a.m. Wednesday “due to hazardous conditions and the deteriorating situation on the ground.”
Authorities said the rescue operations are expected to resume anytime.
Also, authorities said 86 families or around 600 individuals from the neighboring communities have been evacuated to safer locations but not all of the residents left their houses.
“However, there are reports of unaccounted individuals believed to be affected by the landslide,” EastMinCom said.
According to EastMinCom, the roads in the area remain impassable and there is no cellphone signal in the area.