Maguindanao del Norte relief operations continue as Paeng survivors mourn deaths

Search and retrieval operations continued in Datu Odin Sinsuat town in Maguindanao del Norte as survivors mourned relatives who died due to the onslaught of Severe Tropical Storm Paeng.

According to GMA Regional TV One Mindanao's Abby Caballero’s report on “24 Oras,” four residents are still missing after a landslide triggered by Paeng swept through the town.

Rescue teams used cranes to lift huge stones and dig through the debris. K-9 units were also deployed to help in the search.

Among the survivors of the landslide was Joan Masukat who was rescued together with her husband and six-year-old child. She lost her youngest child, however, after she lost her grip on him during the landslide.

“Pinilit ko tanggalin ‘yung alambre para makapa ko rin siya. Akala ko makukuha ko pa sya,” she said.

(I tried to remove the wire I was caught on to get him.)

Masukat said most of the victims were traumatized by the flash floods and landslides and no longer wanted to return to their homes.

“Halos lahat kami dito, hindi na namin gusto na bumalik pa doon. Ang gusto namin ngayon makahingi kami ng tulong na mailagay kami sa safe na lugar,” she added.

(Almost all of us do not want to go back. We are asking for help so we get relocated somewhere safer.)

Typhoon victim April Lorenzo meanwhile lost her father and four-year-old child when the storm hit. Her mother remains missing when she was swept away by a powerful river current.

“Sana may miracle na buhay pa sya,” said Lorenzo. (I hope there’s a miracle and she’s still alive.)

The provincial social welfare office said the survivors would be provided psychosocial services.

Apart from financial assistance, local officials are also looking for possible relocation sites where the survivors could be settled. — Sundy Locus/DVM, GMA News