Long mountain crack prompts evacuation

CEBU, Philippines - A three-kilometer crack in the mountains of Ronda, southwestern Cebu prompted the Office of the Civil Defense (OCD) to order a forced evacuation among residents of Barangay Vive.

Meanwhile in Negros Oriental, rescuers in Planas, Guihulngan retrieved yesterday afternoon the decomposing bodies of a pregnant mother and her two young children who were buried in a landslide after last Monday’s quake, even as victims in affected areas complained of unequal distribution relief goods.

The death toll from the strong quake this week rose to 39 yesterday with dozens of missing feared dead.

The OCD declared Barangay Vive in Ronda as a danger zone. Portions of its mountain already slid to lower ground, damaging some houses. A school with about 300 students and 150 families live at the foot of the mountain. 

In an interview over TV Patrol Central Visayas, residents said they want to move but do not know where to go. The matter was not immediately known by higher government agencies since it was only recorded at the Ronda Municipal Social Welfare Office.

In Negros, rescuers recovered five bodies in Guihulngan City and La Libertad town where the 6.7-magnitude quake flattened homes, destroyed bridges and crumbled mountainsides.

"We're still looking for 66 people," National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council Chief Benito Ramos said.

Most of the missing are feared buried in landslides. The death toll is expected to rise as hopes of recovering more people alive are fading despite 2,000 soldiers intensifying search operations.

Recovered were Maritess Nocos Jimenez, 32, her daughter Christie, 2, and her son, Arvin, one year old, said Guihulngan City Councilor Jessica Villarmente.

Already in advanced state of decomposition, they were identified through their clothing by the husband whose name was not made available at press time.

Rescue workers have been at Planas since Tuesday for search, rescue and retrieval operations after at least 24 people were reported missing. The landslide area is vast and hardly accessible, making it impossible to bring in heavy equipment.

Mike Gorne of the Amity Volunteer Fire Brigade and team leader of the group deployed at Planas said that around noon Friday, relatives of the victims noticed an unusually large swarm of flies in a certain portion of the landslide area.

Buckling down to work, using only picks and shovels and manual labor, rescuers dug up the victims’ bodies in shallow ground, between one to four feet underneath the rubble, said Gorne.

The mother and her son were found almost next to each other while the daughter was found a few feet away. Residents said the family’s house was at a higher elevation of the mountain before the ground collapsed.

Body bags were immediately sent to Planas while arrangements are being made for the local government to provide burial and other of assistance to the family.

The disaster council said it is providing food and other assistance to more than 88,000 quake survivors, including most of the 33,000 who lost their homes and are at government-run evacuation centers.

But victims are now complaining against what unequal distribution of relief goods. A resident of Guihulngan City said most of those who received aid are from Barangay Poblacion while the rest of the barangays did not get any.

University teacher Raymundo Yu said not everybody was given water and that relief goods from the local government are not enough.

Guihulngan City React President and 143 Red Cross Coordinator Bonmark Uy revealed that most of the relief goods donated by other local governments are delivered to the house of the mayor, who is doing his best.

Guihulngan City Mayor Ernesto Reyes said: “In my heart and in my mind nag nag-serbisyo kog tarong.” (I’m doing my best.) He added that there are too many people to attend to so it’s understandable for others to feel left out.

Last Wednesday night, relief goods from Provincial Government of Cebu arrived in Guihulngan City - 100 packs of mineral water, 150 boxes of sardines and 130 boxes of noodles all delivered to Reyes.

As more relief goods are coming to Guihulngan City, making the city as the entry point for the relief goods to other neighboring towns affected by the earthquake, more complaints are also coming. 

Yesterday, two more patients from Guihulngan were also airlifted to Cebu, bringing to nine the number of Negros patients taken to the Don Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center.  (FREEMAN)