2 dead in landslide in Camotes quarrying site

CEBU CITY—Two persons were killed in a landslide on Friday morning while they were quarrying for limestone in Poro town, Camotes Island, northeast of Cebu, authorities said Saturday.

It took rescuers more than 30 minutes to retrieve the bodies of Eliseo Tindog, 59, of Sitio Tugas in Barangay Cagcagan, and Nandy “Tata” Estrera, 30, of Sitio Kapasanan, Barangay San Jose.

The victims were with two other companions who were quarrying for limestone (anapog), which would be used in the construction of a house owned by the daughter of Tindog.

SPO2 David Sotto, Poro police investigator, said Tindog and Estrera did not notice debris was starting to fall in the shallow portion of the cliff where they were quarrying for limestone.

He said that when the landslide hit, the two failed to run for safety. Their two companions, who were about 2 meters from the victims, were able to escape unscathed.

Sotto, however, said he didn’t have the names of the two survivors.

But he said it was raining at the time, which may have caused the soil to loosen and triggered the landslide.

Sotto said the cliff in Sitio Libas was a known quarry site for limestone but the Poro municipal government had stopped the practice because the area is one of those identified as landslide prone.

But he added that some people continued to defy the order and continued to quarry for limestone even if the weather was bad.

Many people resort to quarrying as their source of livelihood, often ignoring the dangers of digging for quarry materials in geohazard areas.