Survivors of Davao de Oro landslide recount near-death experiences

Fear struck Davao de Oro residents on Tuesday night when mud and debris fell outside of a gold mining site in Maco town during a landslide.

The landslide hit a bus company, where passengers on three buses and a jeepney were covered by rocks and tons of soil.

As of this writing, rescuers continue to search for survivors. The death toll earlier this week reached 28, and 77 individuals are still missing as of February 10.

The landslide that occurred was already the third one to happen in Barangay Masara in a span of only two decades.

The incident brought up the question: What was the actual cause of the landslide? 

According to Geologist Elvin De Leon, there are various contributing factors to landslides. 

“There are different contributing factors kung paano nag-landslide. Isa d’yan yung heavy rainfall.”

[“There are different contributing factors to the occurrence of landslides, and heavy rainfall is one of them.]

“The DENR through Mines and Geosciences Bureau, mayroon silang ginawang hazard maps dito sa buong Pilipinas. Puwede natin makita rito kung ang area natin is prone to landslide or flood”, he added. 

[The DENR, through the Mines and Geosciences Bureau, has created hazard maps for the entire Philippines. These maps allow us to see if our area is prone to landslides or floods.]

Public Information Officer Jiesyl Mae Tan stated “the cause of the landslide is natural which means it’s about the steep slope of the area. Continue ang ating pagbibigay ng caution to the public. Because disasters we cannot really know when it will strike.”

[“The cause of the landslide is natural, which means that it has something to do with the steep slope of the area. We continuously caution the public because we cannot predict when disasters will strike.”]

In an episode of “Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho,” survivors looked back at their near-death experiences, with all of them expressing their relief to have survived the disaster.

Cirillo

Forty-nine-year-old Cirillo sustained bruises on his body following the incident and is currently recovering in the hospital.

He said that he was on his way from work when he was thrown about ten meters when he was hit by the rushing soil.

Almost his entire body, except his head, was buried for almost an hour.

But instead of immediately rushing to the hospital, Cirillo helped in the rescue first.

JL

JL recalled that it was past seven in the evening when the bus he was on started moving with the shaking ground.

“Parang normal lang talaga nangyari. Cellphone lang po ako,” he said. “Tapos biglang nagtakbuhan ‘yung mga katabi ko na parang sobrang takot na takot. Tumayo na din po ako at parang tatakbo na rin. Pero ilang kwan lang po ako, humagauros na ang mga bato."

[“I was on my phone when I noticed people were running away, like they were afraid of something. So I got up and started running too. Then the rocks started to fall.”]

“Sobrang lucky ko na nabuhay pa talaga ako doon,” JL added, showing a photo of his body covered by mud.

[“I’m so lucky I survived the landslide.”]

JL was able to pull himself out of the soil and run to a safer area.

“Parang sobrang lucky ko nabigyan po ako ng second chance. Papahalagahan po natin ‘yung buhay natin. Kasi di po natin alam kailan tayo kukunin,” he said.

["I'm extremely lucky that I was given a second chance. We should value our lives because we never know how long we have left to live.”]

Tatay Orlando and his daughter

A glimmer of hope touched rescuers and residents when a three-year-old girl was found alive.

The girl survived the landslide with her father, Orlando, who works as a security guard at the mine.

Orlando said that before it happened, he had already warned his family after he noticed indications of the landslide.

Orlando was able to rescue his second child first, But his wife and their eldest child are yet to be found.

Families of missing victims

Barangay Masara has gone silent except for the sound of the rescuers’ backhoe combined with the sobs of family members who are waiting for the return of their missing relatives.

Grace, a 54-year-old woman, was among those who had been going back and forth in the waiting area. She was waiting for her son Jesson and for her daughter-in-law, Maria, who are workers from the mining company.

Unfortunately, on Friday, sad news approached Grace as it was confirmed that Jesson and Maria had already passed.

The couple was found holding each other in an embrace when their bodies were discovered.

Aside from Grace, a woman named Bernadette has also been waiting for news on her boyfriend, Joseph, who also works as a miner.

“Magpo-propose na sana siya. Hindi ako mapakali hindi ko na alam kung buhay pa ba 'yung nobyo ko,” she said.

["He was about to propose marriage to me. I don’t know what to do. I don’t even know if he’s still alive," she said.]

But with each passing day, Bernadette starts to lose her remaining hope.

“Tanggap ko na talaga siguro wala na siya talaga kasi three days na wala pa siyang paramdam nagdadasal ako na sana nasa magandang kamay siya okay lang kahit katawan niya na lang ‘yung makita na masamahan namin siya malamayan,” she said.

[“It’s been three days. Maybe I have to accept the possibility that he’s dead. I hope that we could at least find his body so we could pay our respects.”]

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—JCB, GMA Integrated News