St. Bernard, Philippines, 22 February 2006 --- Four days after the mudslide that wiped out an entire village in the Philippines, local and international rescue teams race against time to save residents, including 247 school children. They were studying in class when a mountain fell on top of them.

“We are still hoping that we could still find survivors,” says Juan Javiera, a member of the Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council.

At around 9 a.m. on Friday 17 February, a massive torrent of mud swept over the village of Guinsaugon, in the province of Southern Leyte. Continuous rain for the past two weeks had eroded a portion of the slope of Mt. Can-abag, causing the mudslide that covered 90 per cent of the village in seconds.

On Friday, the sun shone over the village, belying the tragedy that was about to hit the community. Mary Grace Bulagsac, 30, went about her daily chores. “I was hanging laundry to dry under the sun, when I heard a rumble, like the sound of a helicopter. Then, I saw the mudflow. I ran and took my son. We ran all the way to the rice field with my mother,” she recalls.

Mary Grace’s husband was working in the field when the mudslide occurred. He is still among the 980 missing.

Evacuation centers
The National Disaster Coordinating Council reported that 107 bodies had been found, while 560 had survived the tragedy. Nineteen were rescued from the site and had been treated at a hospital in an adjacent town.  Over 1,600 people are staying in five evacuation centers in St. Bernard.

“I lost two of my children who were in school, my brother’s family, my husband’s sister, I was able to save my youngest child,” says Dolores Labañas, 38, who is staying at the Christo Rey National High School. Like Mary Grace, Dolores was also doing the laundry and planning to attend the meeting of the women’s group at the rural health station.

Dolores felt a slight tremor but was not immediately alarmed. She heard a rumble from the mountain and then shouts from neighbors warning everybody to run for their lives.

“I jumped out of our yard. I looked for my youngest who was playing outside. When I looked back, I saw the mudflow. I kept shouting for my son. When I saw him, I grabbed him and we ran.”

Dolores’ husband was out of the village when the landslide came. “My husband keeps coming back to the site, hoping that our children and relatives are still alive.”

Search and rescue
Rescue teams from the American forces on a military exercise mission in Southern Philippines as well as teams from other countries began arriving in St. Bernard on Sunday, 19 February. Continuous rain hampered the search and rescue effort and caused concern for a repeat of Friday’s terrifying mudslide.

On Tuesday 21 February, the rain momentarily stopped allowing rescue workers to reach deeper into the disaster zone to a spot where the elementary school and other houses were presumed to be buried. Seismic listening devices from Taiwanese and Malaysian teams were brought to the scene in the hopes of finding survivors.

“This kind of rescue means manual labor, shovel, manpower,” says Captain Roman Diosio of the Philippine Air Force. Capt. Dioso and his team were the first to land in the area.

“On the first day, I put my four para-rescue men on site. They were guided by the local people who were there. And they found survivors, I lost the exact numbers. Some of the locals also found survivors,” says Capt. Dioso.

Unstable ground and sporadic rain showers, however, continued to limit rescue effort.

Relief assistance
UNICEF Representative Nicholas Alipui says there has been a massive show of support from neighboring countries and the international community. Nearly US $2 million worth of assistance in cash and relief items has been generated. “A major challenge now is to coordinate all the support coming in,” he says.

Relief assistance is focusing on water and sanitation, providing medical assessments, and ensuring adequate nutrition for the survivors. UNICEF already sent the first shipment of UNICEF supplies --- including essential drugs, medical equipment and water purification tablets, meant to last for three months.

UNICEF is working with local authorities to restart educational activities for school children from the affected communities in St. Bernard.

Possible landslides in other towns
A UNICEF team in Southern Leyte has reported that an additional 3,000 people have been evacuated in two other towns due to possible landslides.

Five villages in the towns of Liloan and San Francisco may suffer the same fate of Guinsaugon as people in upland communities reported wide cracks appearing on mountain slopes. Over 300 Mamanwas, an indigenous group in mountain villages, flocked to town centers and sought refuge in evacuation sites.

“Food supply is estimated to last for one week and medicines are running low,” reports Leon Dominador Fajardo, UNICEF emergency focal person. “The situation in Liloan and San Francisco has not yet been picked up by emergency teams because relief assistance has been concentrated in St. Bernard.”

UNICEF has been monitoring the weather situation in seven coastal communities along the eastern seaboards. “Already, there’s been too much suffering,” says Dr. Alipui.

In December 2003, landslides occurred in Liloan, San Francisco, and San Ricardo where over 200 people were killed, and more than 2,000 families affected. Geohazards identified in Southern Leyte include erosion and associated landslides in the mountains and proximity to the undersea Philippine Trench, a site of seismic activity.

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For further information or to arrange interviews, please contact:

Dale Rutstein
UNICEF Manila, 901 0177 or 0917 866 4969, drutstein@unicef.org
Alexis Rodrigo
UNICEF Manila, 901 0173 or 0917 858 9447, arodrigo@unicef.org