The remains of eight people buried in a landslide in Malapatan, Sarangani have been retrieved while search and retrieval operations for a one-year-old boy continues, as of this writing.

Up to 10 individuals from two households were buried after the landslide hit Sitio Fandao, Barangay Poblacion on Friday, July 10, 2026.

After the incident, one victim was brought to a hospital but was later declared dead on arrival.

However, due to the area’s remote location from the town proper, the other eight bodies were recovered the next day using a black hawk helicopter from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

A woman, Villa Itorma, is hoping that her one-year-old grandson will also be recovered.

“Bisag’ bukog lang para maplastar lang pagkabutang sa bata kay luoy pud inahan, amahan, mga igsuon… malagyo sila,” Itorma said.

However, the search and retrieval operation by the local government continues.

“Manghiram kami ng K-9 sa Armed Forces para makita natin ang body ng one-year-old (baby),” Malapatan Mayor Salway Sumbo, Jr. said.

GLAN FLOODING

Meanwhile, raging floodwaters from a river in Barangay Mudan overflowed and entered houses in the area on Saturday, July 11, 2026.

Around 450 houses were damaged, most of them swept away by floodwaters.

“Mao nong naguba akong balay kay kaning troso nisulod sa among sala,” a resident affected, Julie Magsanay, said.

After the flooding, a 56-year-old Anita Tagulan gathered pieces of wood left behind by the flood to make a sleeping area for herself and her newborn child.

“Sila lay makabali namo kay ang among balay dito (nadanyos) mao gani ning gipanghakot namo kay walay kahigdaan,” Tagulan said.

Several houses in a barangay nearby were also submerged in floodwaters.

According to reports, the severe flooding was allegedly caused by an artificial dam that formed in the mountains following the magnitude 7.8 earthquake on June 8.

“Tungod sa miaging linog, dunay artificial damming sa babaw, gani murag isa pa pang naabli nabuhang so naa pay nahibilin didto nga pipila ka artificial dam nga mao pung gikahadlukan sa pagkakaron,” Barangay Mudan Chairman Julita Embajador said.

The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) also reported that a couple remains missing following the landslide that also occurred in the same town.

The two are residents of Barangay E. Alegado and are currently being searched for by authorities.

State weather bureau PAGASA said the flooding in the province was caused by the southwest monsoon or Habagat intensified by #IndayPH.