16 bodies recovered in Benguet landslide, dozens more feared buried

MANILA, Philippines — The number of bodies retrieved by authorities on Tuesday afternoon from the landslide site in Itogon, Benguet rose to 16.

This was after two more bodies were recovered by volunteers and rescuers who were conducting continuous search, rescue and retrieval operations from the buried mine site in Barangay Ucab in Itogon.

Dozens are still missing and are believed to be trapped in the landslide site, a key gold mining area.

In its noon situation report, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said around 90 rescuers and volunteers from local government units and non-government organizations are conducting search, rescue and retrieval operations in the area.

These include K9 handlers and dogs. Philippine Coast Guard rescue dogs also arrived in the area to give aid in the operations.

The rescuers used shovels and their bare hands to sift through the massive landslide, which transpired over the weekend when a part of a mountain slope eroded and buried the miners’ bunkhouses following the onslaught of Typhoon Ompong (international name: Mangkhut).

NDRRMC Director Edgar Posadas said these miners and their families went up and sought refuge in the bunkhouses abandoned by a large mining firm during the typhoon.

He said the Interior and Local Government department did not specify whether the local officials of Itogon implemented forced evacuation prior to the incident.

“These miners…. they went up and sought shelter from the bunkhouses. Unfortunately, there was a mountain or hill that eroded due to the saturation of soil,” Posadas said in mixed English and Filipino in a press conference on Tuesday afternoon.

Authorities hopeful survivors will be saved

Posadas said the government is hopeful that rescuers would still recover survivors from the tragic landslide.

Itogon Mayor Victorio Palangdan said he is also optimistic that some lives would be saved.

"While I said there is a 99-percent chance that all of them are dead, there is still that one-percent chance," Palangdan told AFP.

"The rescue effort will continue until the president orders us to stop," he said.

The NDRRMC explained that it is taking time to verify the identities of the bodies recovered because they now have stiffer measures to follow due to Resolution No. 19 of the agency. He added that some rescuers are only recovering body parts because “they can only go as far.”

Posadas said only age and gender could be determined with the recovered body part. They are conducting DNA tests to identify the bodies retrieved.

He said they have prepared for 21-day retrieval operations.

They are still coordinating with the commanders on-the-ground and LGUs to determine when they should stop the operations. 

RELATED: DENR suspends small-scale mining in Cordillera

Following the massive landslide, Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu ordered the suspension of all small-scale mining activities in the Cordillera region. — with reports from Agence France-Presse