Davao de Oro landslide death toll hits 27

The death toll in the landslide that hit Maco, Davao de Oro earlier this week has reached 27.

According to John Calonia's report on Super Radyo dzBB, the provincial government and the Maco Municipal Disaster and Risk Reduction Management Office (MDRRMO) said at least 32 persons were injured and 89 individuals are still missing as of 6 p.m. on February 9.

A 14-hour extension has been implemented on the search and rescue operations after a three-year-old girl was rescued earlier today.

The provincial government said the child received medical attention and is now stable.  

“A miraculous little girl survived the landslide that hit Zone 1, Barangay Masara, Maco. This girl was rescued this morning during an ongoing search, rescue, and retrieval operation by our responders,” it said. 

“So far, this child’s condition is confirmed to be stable after receiving proper medical attention by doctors and nurses at the hospital,” it added. 

The landslide happened on Tuesday night outside a gold mining site in the town of Maco in the province of Davao de Oro, burying homes, including three buses and a jeep that were supposed to ferry employees of the mining company.

Provincial authorities said the child who survived was in stable condition.

Disaster officials previously reported that two buses, carrying 27 passengers were buried, but mining operator Apex Mining said in a statement on Friday that four vehicles were found buried in the landslide.

A communications officer at Apex said the company has no information yet on how many passengers the vehicles were carrying when the landslide occurred. Apex earlier said the buses have a 60-seating capacity, while the jeep can sit 36 passengers.

Torrential rains have battered Davao de Oro in recent weeks, triggering floods and landslides.

 As of Friday morning, 1,195,672 people were affected by the Northeast Monsoon or Amihan and the trough of a low-pressure area (LPA), the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said in a report. —with a report from Reuters/NB, GMA Integrated News