Rescuers race to save 45 bus passengers buried in Davao de Oro landslide

Equipped with flashlights and hand-held tools, rescuers race against time to free the passengers of two buses that were buried in a landslide in the town of Maco in Davao de Oro. 

According to Oscar Oida’s 24 Oras report on Wednesday, at least six passengers have died in the tragic incident on Tuesday caused by the heavy rains triggered by the trough of the Low Pressure Area (LPA) that have affected parts of the Davao Region.

Around 30 people were injured while 45 remain missing.The victims are employees of the APEX Mining company.

“Hinahatid 'yan doon sa bayan ng Mawab. So that night, yung palabas na bus, mga paalis na po, patapos na 'yung shifting,” said Davao de Oro Executive Assistant on Information and Communications Ed Macapili.

(The bus was en route to Mawab with workers from the mines who had ended their shift.)

“Nagkaroon naman ng trough ng LPA. Mas makapal ang volume of water kasi talagang malakas yung ulan. It might be the reason, na na-absorb 'yung tubig ng bundok kasi ganun ang karamihan ng landslide dito,” he added.

(The trough of the LPA resulted in heavy rains.The heavier rainfall produced more volume of water. The soil on top of the mountain absorbed too much water and this might have caused the landslide.)

Search and rescue operations for the missing victims are ongoing.

According to Macapili, the local government cannot point to the mining operations in the area as the cause of the deadly landslides.

“I cannot attribute it to the mining operation kasi ang APEX Mining naman kasi, well-cared for yung environment. Hindi nga natin malalaman na talagang may mining area diyan,” said Macapili.

(I cannot attribute these events to mining operations by Apex because the environment was well cared for. You won’t even notice the mining activities.)—Sundy Locus/RF, GMA Integrated News