9 dead in Visayas landslide; Red Cross helping out in rescue, relief operations

MANILA, Philippines (PNA) — Nine persons were already reported dead due to the landslide and flooding in the Visayas region on Thursday, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said. Red Cross helping out in rescue, relief operations.

As this developed, the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) is already helping out in the rescue-and-relief operations by providing soup kitchens and first aid to the victims.

NDRMMC identified the latest victim as Armando Buticarlo of Barangay Danicop, Sierra Bullones, Bohol Province. He was reported to have drowned in a flashflood.

NDRRMC executive director Benito Ramos identified the other fatalities as Marlon Jordan, 35; his wife Jenette, 36; and five children Mariette, 17; Angelina, 16; John Paul, 13; John Rey, 5; and John Harezh, 4.

Ramos said they were a family of seven who were killed in a landslide in a remote area in Tacloban, Leyte on Thursday morning.

He said it happened when the Jordan couple and their five children were asleep at 2 a.m. Thursday in the mountain village of Cabalawan, 14 kilometers from the city proper.

Reports reaching NDRRMC in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City said continuous rains that started at 8 a.m. Wednesday loosened the soil and triggered a landslide in Cabalawan.

Ramos said the continuous rains was also felt in the Visayas Region and some parts in Mindanao which caused flooding in the provinces of Bohol (Region VII), Samar, Leyte, Southern Leyte (Region VIII) and Misamis Oritental (Regions X).

Tornado occurrence was experienced in Banga, South Cotabato (Region XII).

Preemptive evacuation was implemented in some barangays in Palo, Leyte and Samar due to impending flashflood. Other residents were also alerted for force evacuation if weather condition in their area worsened.

In Region VII, an estimated area of 10 hectares of rice fields were damaged by the flood and inundated the riverside areas in Bohol.

While in Region X, damages to livestock amounting to P 31,500 was reported in Barangays Ulaliman, Hinigdaan and Amoros in El Salvador City, Misamis Oriental.