Fatal mudslide
January 6, 2012
On Friday, authorities in the Philippines ordered a halt to all gold mining activities in a southern town threatened by landslides.
The order comes after a mudslide led to the death of at least 27 people in a nearby village a day earlier. Local officials said at least 150 people were reported still missing as the government scrambled to send rescue relief.
It was the area’s second deadly landslide in a year after 20 people were killed last April. Another landslip in 2009 killed 26, according to local officials.
A local military official said there were fears the death toll could rise after heavy rains triggered the mudslide, which buried an area of 7,500 square meters, destroying a small shanty town.
The remote mountainous hamlet had been declared off limits last year due to a history of landslides, but rich gold deposits had lured prospectors back to the area.
Civil Defense chief Benito Ramos said rescuers were using only spades and other hand tools to search for survivors in Barangay Napnapan near the town of Pantukan. He said so far at least 15 people have been pulled alive from the rubble and rushed to hospital.
Author: Darren Mara (AFP, Reuters)
Editor: Sarah Berning