GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews/01 July) — An upland village in Tampakan town in South Cotabato has remained isolated following a major landslide in the area on Monday afternoon.
South Cotabato Gov. Daisy Avance-Fuentes said Tuesday a portion of a mountain in Barangay Palo in Tampakan reportedly collapsed following almost nonstop heavy rains in the area since Sunday night.
She said no one was hurt in the incident but it affected the main road leading to the village, isolating local residents.
“The main road was shut down because of the landslide and is currently inaccessible to all types of vehicles,” she said in a radio interview.
The governor said the landslide hampered the movement of residents, especially those who were buying household supplies and students enrolled in schools at the town proper and other nearby areas.
She said it also affected the transport of various products, especially high-value vegetables grown in the area, to the local markets.
Fuentes said they immediately sent personnel from the Provincial Engineer’s Office to assess the area’s situation and implement remedial measures.
She said a backhoe and payloader were also dispatched to the area to clear the roads affected by the landslide and facilitate the road’s reopening.
Fuentes said she instructed the Provincial Risk Reduction and Management Office, through its operations head Dads Bacalso, to conduct a separate site inspection and determine the immediate needs of the affected residents.
In June last year, a series of landslides also hit the area and portions of nearby Barangays Tablu while several cracks were found in mountains situated in Pulabato following sporadic of heavy rains.
Two major landslides were recorded in a road leading to Barangay Tablu, affecting the movement of vehicles to the base camp of foreign-backed mining firm Sagittarius Mines Inc.
Constancio Paye Jr., Mines and Geosciences Bureau-Region 12 director, earlier said their assessment showed that the upland areas of Tampakan are considered prone to landslides due to the steep slopes and the rapid softening of the top soil of the mountains there during the rainy season. (MindaNews)