October 25, 2024 | 5:28pm
MANILA, Philippines — A heavy landslide in Talisay, Batangas, buried 14 individuals, leading to their deaths, as confirmed by the Batangas Provincial Police Office (BPPO). The number is expected to rise as retrieval operations continue.
According to the Police Regional Office in Calabarzon, the landslide occurred on Thursday, October 24, due to the heavy rains brought by Severe Tropical Storm Kristine (international name: Trami).
BPPO Director Jacinto Malinao Jr. said in an interview with DZBB Super Radyo on Thursday, October 25, that the bodies of the 14 deceased have been physically retrieved.
He also mentioned that search efforts are ongoing for additional individuals at the landslide site, specifically a mother and child, which would raise the confirmed death toll to 16, according to Malinao.
According to Talisay Mayor Nestor Natanauan, the number of affected families has reached 311, including 1,457 individuals at evacuation centers.
“Sa pagdaan ng bagyong Kristine, lubos na naapektuhan ang bayan ng Talisay. Sa loob ng dalawang araw na pananalasa nito, nagkaroon ng pagbaha at pagguho ng lupa sa ilang barangay,” he said in a Facebook post.
(With the passing of Severe Tropical Storm Kristine, the town of Talisay was severely affected. During its two days of onslaught, there were floods and landslides in several barangays.)
Natanauan said that the local government unit is continually monitoring the situation and conducting retrieval operations for missing individuals.
In Batangas, Malinao said that a total of 33 individuals have been confirmed dead as of 2:45 p.m. on Thursday. There are still 11 missing people and eight dead in Laurel, Batangas.
Talisay is also frequented by quarrying and mining operations. In 2021, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) won a case against six miners for illegally extracting palanas minerals valued at P2.46 million in Barangay Banga, Talisay.
The Mining and Geosciences Bureau in Calabarzon, in collaboration with the DENR and law enforcement agencies, apprehended them, along with two others, in December 2019.
Philstar.com has reached out to environmental group Kalikasan for more information regarding quarrying projects in Talisay and the landslide risks associated with them.
As of 8 a.m. on Friday, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council reported that the affected population due to Severe Tropical Storm Kristine has reached 2,656,446.
Meanwhile, the death toll in the Calabarzon Region, according to the Office of Civil Defense, stands at 15, accounting for nearly a third of the total recorded deaths of 46 as of 7 a.m.
State weather bureau PAGASA reported that Kristine left the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR) at 2 p.m. on Friday, October 25. — with reports from Jean Mangaluz
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