MANILA, Philippines – Two more victims were confirmed dead as another landslide incident occurred in Valencia City, Bukidnon, early Tuesday, an official of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said.
According to NDRRMC Executive Director Benito Ramos, two children were confirmed dead after being buried in a landslide that occurred at 8 a.m. Tuesday in Tongan-tongan village, also in Valencia City.
The death toll in the landslide in Bukidnon has reached five, Ramos said clarifying earlier reports that rescue teams recovered six bodies on Monday. Ramos said that rescue teams recovered five cadavers including that of a woman whose body was split in two, which led to a confusion in the tally of casualties. Ramos said three other persons were rescued Monday.
Search-and-rescue operations resumed Tuesday morning after being halted late Monday due to the prevailing bad weather in the province and the unstable condition of the soil in the area, Ramos said.
In its latest situation report, the NDRRMC identified the fatalities recovered on Monday as Sheryl Sadsad, Segundina Lagunay and Marites Lagunay, while Tuesday’s fatalities were identified as Joy Colamma, 7, and Roque Santillan, 6.
Three persons were also rescued, who had incurred injuries. They were identified as Reynante Sadsad, Manolito Casto and Bienvenido Castro Jr. Eight others remain missing, the NDRRMC said.
Four landslide incidents have been reported since Monday morning, which were brought about by continuous rains in the province due to the prevailing intertropical convergence zone affecting parts of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.
Ramos said that search-and-rescue operations will continue until all missing persons are accounted for, although there will be delays since rescue workers are being cautious due to the continuous bad weather conditions.
He added that troops from the 8th Infantry Battalion under Colonel Jose Cuerpo are conducting rescue operations in Valencia City. Likewise, rescue teams from the provincial and city disaster councils were also deployed to the site of the incident. Additional heavy equipment including bulldozers and payloaders are still needed.
Meanwhile, Ramos urged residents living in mountainous areas in San Fernando town and Valencia City to conduct preemptive evacuation.
They should avoid mountain slopes and go to safer ground away from flood and landslide prone areas, Ramos said.