Philippines landslide: Death toll rises to 68 in Davao de Oro
The recent landslide in the Philippines, which occurred nearly a week ago, has resulted in the confirmed death of at least 68 individuals in a gold mining village.
Officials report that 51 people remain missing after the disaster in Davao de Oro province on Tuesday. However, rescue teams express little optimism about finding additional survivors.
Remarkably, a three-year-old girl was the last individual rescued from the mud, emerging alive after more than 60 hours buried. Her rescue was hailed as “a miracle” and offered hope to rescuers, according to Edward Macapili, a disaster agency official from Davao de Oro province.
Despite initial optimism, hopes for finding more survivors have dwindled. Macapili stated, “It is almost a week after the incident and… we are assuming that no one is alive there.” The foul smell emanating from the area further underscores the urgency to expedite recovery efforts.
More than 30 people were injured.
Landslides are a frequent hazard across much of the Philippines because of the mountainous terrain, heavy rainfall, and widespread deforestation from mining and illegal logging.
Heavy monsoon rains have pounded parts of Mindanao on and off for weeks, causing landslides and flooding that have forced tens of thousands of people into emergency shelters.
The area has also been hit by a series of earthquakes, including on Saturday when rescuers were forced to pause their operations due to a magnitude 5.9 earthquake.
