Massive landslide isolates indigenous communities in Bukidnon

VALENCIA CITY, Bukidnon — Clearing operations along the landslide-hit Kapalong-Talaingod-Valencia (KTV) Road in Sitio Balacayo, Barangay Kalagangan in San Fernando Bukidnon are expected to take months.

This comes as crews remove thousands of cubic meters of mud, rocks, trees and other debris that buried the highway, a Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) official said on Sunday.

The massive landslide struck before dawn on July 6 after days of heavy monsoon rains enhanced by Typhoon Inday (international name: Bavi).

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This event cut off a vital road linking Bukidnon and Davao del Norte and isolated several Indigenous Peoples (IP) communities in the hinterlands.

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Engr. Rainer Valderrama, district maintenance engineer of the DPWH First District Engineering Office in Malaybalay City, said clearing operations are progressing cautiously because the slope is unstable.

“We are removing the debris layer by layer because of the unstable slope,” Valderrama told the Inquirer in a phone interview.

Heavy equipment from DPWH Region 10, the DPWH First District Engineering Office, and the San Fernando local government have been deployed to clear debris and reopen the road.According to DPWH-10, the prolonged rainfall had saturated the soil, while nearby seismic activity may also have contributed to slope collapse.

Tree-cutting operations are ongoing at the upper portion of the landslide to prevent additional debris from falling onto personnel and heavy equipment below.Crews continue clearing the estimated 200-meter slide in a bid to establish full access across the blocked section. /apl

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