Hopes fade for 21 buried in landslide

MANILA, Philippines (AP) – Rescuers who dug by hand to save people buried by a landslide were losing hope of finding 21 still missing in the disaster that killed at least three people in a remote gold mining village, officials said today.

One miner pulled from the mountain of mud and rocks said he's survived three landslides in and around the mines — including one that killed his brother — but he can't afford to afford to quit his job despite the dangers.

The shanties and tents where miners and some of their families slept were buried under about 100 feet of mud, soil, rocks and other debris after they were struck by the landslide before dawn yesterday, Compostela Valey provincial Gov. Arturo Uy said.

Uy said landmarks that could help rescuers locate bunkhouses and tunnel entrances also were destroyed when tons of rain-soaked debris cascaded down a mountain in the village of Kingking in Pantukan township in the country's south.

Soldiers, police and miners used shovels and their bare hands to dig out 11 survivors.

"Honestly, I believe it would be very hard to find survivors," Uy said.

Regional civil defense officer Lisa Maso said, "Only a miracle can save them."

Jay Celades, one of the survivors, was teary-eyed recalling his third time surviving a landslide.

The 26-year-old said he, his younger brother and two others banged on the steel rails for six hours inside a mine shaft, knowing they would eventually be heard by rescuers. By midday yesterday, workers dug through about 20 feet of debris that blocked the tunnel opening to free them.

"All we could do was hope, but I prayed and prayed hard to come out alive," he told The Associated Press. "And for the third time, God heard me."

He said another younger brother was killed when they were trapped in a mine shaft in 2009, and he was trapped again a year later.

Despite his ordeal, he said he will continue working in the mine until he finds a better job that pays as much as the about P15,000 ($345) he now brings home monthly.

Pantukan Mayor Celso Sarenas said a backhoe and a bulldozer reached the site on Saturday to help speed up the digging after negotiating a narrow and slippery mountain road.

Pictures from the air show a green mountain scarred by a brown swath of earth from where rocks and debris rolled down onto the sleeping victims.

The landslide covered an area of at least one hectare, said provincial police chief Aaron Aquino.

Aquino said some of the survivors were able to escape after they heard a rumbling sound.

Television footage today showed the tedious rescue effort where workers manually dig with shovels and put soil into small sacks they carried away one by one.

Blue tarpaulin roofing sheets and the broken remains of shanties littered the area and tree trunks snapped like matchsticks indicated the force of the mudslide. Many other shanties that were still standing could be seen perched precariously on mountainsides and ridges.

Uy said he will recommend a 30-day suspension of small-scale mining in the village while geologists determine whether it is still safe for miners.

He said that after a similar landslide which killed 26 people in a nearby village two years ago, residents signed a memorandum not to build residences in the area but some "hardheaded" miners still defied the agreement.

"It is illegal, but we cannot just stop their operation," he said of the miners who eke out a living by digging for gold in narrow, dangerous shafts.