3 more confirmed dead in ComVal landslide

Three more bodies were recovered on Monday from the site of a landslide in Compostela Valley in southern Philippines, raising the death toll to eight, a military official said. Lt. Col. Lyndon Paniza, spokesman of the Army’s 10th Infantry Division assisting in the search-and-retrieval operations, said they have yet to establish the identities of the latest fatalities, whose bodies were recovered at about 10 a.m. Five of the eight fatalities had been identified as John Ric Torrejos, Marjun Gilabtan, Rolieto Tabag, Danny Prendo and Marvin Anglai by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council. Paniza said they have shifted from search and rescue operations to search and retrieval as he admitted that chances of survival in the landslide site are “very, very slim." “We cannot determine kung hanggang kailan ito, but as of now, nasa retrieval mode na tayo. Kung impractical na siyang ipagpatuloy, siguro that’s the time na ititigil na natin," he said.

Days on end of constant rain had caused the landslide in a mining site in Kingking village in Pantukan town last Good Friday, burying houses and people nearby. A separate report by Sherrie Ann Torres on GMA News TV on Monday said about 16 more people remain missing due to the landslide. The report likewise said that 112 families living near the site will be evacuateddue to possible soil erosion near the area. - KBK, GMA News