Philippines (the): Landslide: 2006/02/17

Period	2006/02/17
Country or District	Philippines (the)
Event Type	Landslide
Outline	A mudslide triggered by heavy rains buried a whole village in the Philippine province of Southern Leyte. Reportedly more than 200 people were killed in the slide with about 1,500 people missing.

Related Links

Report/Articles

OCHA Situation Report No. 9 2006/02/27
On 27 February, the Governor of Southern Leyte Province announced that 7 hectares of land in Magbagakay had been designated as the site of a temporary relocation centre for the former residents of Guinsagon village. The U.S. Government will provide funding and construction will be carried out by local contractors. It is hoped that the relocation centre will be operational within 30-45 days.

OCHA Situation Report No. 8 2006/02/24
With the official end of search and rescue operations focus has shifted to ensuring support for the affected population in the medium to long-term.

OCHA Situation Report No. 7 2006/02/26
The quantity of relief supplies in the pipeline is sufficient to meet the needs of those in the eight evacuation centres. The Government has emphasized that they will ensure an integrated approach is taken to ongoing needs assessment.

OCHA Situation Report No. 6 2006/02/22
The Office of Civil Defense has estimated that the landslide has resulted in approximately Php 92.2 million in damage to infrastructure and Php 22.6 million in damage to agriculture in the area.

OCHA Situation Report No. 5 2006/02/21
Six evacuation centres have been established to house approximately 2,100 people including the former residents of Guinsaugon and those from two neighbouring villages that were partially affected by the original landslides. At least one additional centre will be opened to address concerns of overcrowding in the existing centres.

Reuters AlertNet 2006/02/20
Rescue workers pulled five bodies on Monday from a Philippine school buried under a mudslide, dashing reports of a miraculous recovery of 50 people three days after their village was obliterated.

OCHA Situation Report No. 4 2006/02/20
The Government emphasizes that it is still pursuing rescue efforts and is focusing assets on the local school and town hall, which are thought to contain a large number of people. The NDCC reports that there are currently 1,013 personnel onsite, from national and international organizations, pursuing search and rescue operations. An additional 117 personnel are providing emergency relief and medical services.

OCHA Situation Report No. 3 2006/02/18
A ‘no fly zone’ has been declared around Guinsaugon due to concerns that helicopter downwash could trigger additional landslides. This has further complicated access to the site. The landslides have also blocked tributaries of a major river which could cause flooding in nearby areas. Weather in the area is cloudy but no rain was reported at the site today and rain is not anticipated in the coming days contrary to previous weather forecasts.

OCHA Situation Report No. 2 2006/02/18
1,500 people, including 250 staff and students of the local school, are believed to be buried in the village of Guidsaugon. At the present time 80 people have been rescued and are staying in three evacuation centres. 41 of the survivors sustained injuries and are being treated at the local hospital. 19 unidentified bodies have been recovered from the site.

OCHA Situation Report No. 1 2006/02/17
Two weeks of sustained rains in the central Philippines have triggered a landslide in the province of Southern Leyte. The landslide hit the village of Guinsaugon (estimated population 1,400) near the town of St. Bernard at 10 a.m. local time (02:00 GMT) today. According to the Philippines Office of Civil Defense, up to 2,000 people may have been buried by the landslide, including 250 children in the local school.

BBC News 2006/02/18
Heavy rain sent a torrent of earth, mud and rocks down on the village of Guinsaugon in the Philippines. A relief official says 1,800 people are feared dead. Only a few dozen were pulled out of the mud alive on 17 February 2006.

CNN 2006/02/17
Of the 300 houses in the area, only three are left that are not covered. An elementary school with 35 students was also covered in mud.

BBC News 2006/02/17
An entire village has been buried by a major landslide in the central Philippines following heavy rains. Sixteen people have been confirmed dead so far, but Red Cross officials estimated that 200 might be dead, and said a further 1,500 were missing.

Reuters AlertNet 2006/02/17
Hundreds of people were feared dead in the central Philippines after mudslides triggered by heavy rains buried houses and an elementary school packed with children on Friday, officials and witnesses said.

Geographycal Data

Reuters AlertNet 2006/02/18
The map is derived from Shuttle Radar Topographu Mission (SRTM) elevation data. Leyte Island - Village of Guinsaugon - Shaded elevation map

[ERI Emergency Relief Information]

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is launching a preliminary emergency appeal for 2 million Swiss francs (€1.28 million/$1.52 million USD) in order to support the emergency relief operation led by the Philippine National Red Cross in response to the landslide in Southern Leyte in central Philippines.

Urgent Report from Supporting Members of the Asian Disaster Reduction Center

Situation Report by National Disaster Coordinating Council as of 5:00PM, 28 February 2006
Update regarding Landslide at Brgy Guinsaugon, Saint Bernard, Southern Leyte

Situation Report by National Disaster Coordinating Council as of 12:00PM, 27 February 2006
Update regarding Landslide at Brgy Guinsaugon, Saint Bernard, Southern Leyte

Situation Report by National Disaster Coordinating Council as of 12:00PM, 26 February 2006
The Search and rescue operations was terminated (February 24 at 2400H) to commence relief / recovery and rehabilitation efforts.

Situation Report by National Disaster Coordinating Council as of 12:00PM, 24 February 2006
Update regarding Landslide at Brgy Guinsaugon, Saint Bernard, Southern Leyte

Situation Report by National Disaster Coordinating Council as of 12:00PM, 22 February 2006
Search, rescue, retrieval, relief and recovery operations continue with the support coming from various troops of AFP, other relief agencies of the government and non-government sectors both international and local.

Situation Report by National Disaster Coordinating Council as of 8:00AM, 21 February 2006
A total of P37,068,000.00 foreign assistance was extended to the Philippine government with pledges amounting to US$154,850.00 in terms of relief goods, medicines and medical supplies, services and manpower for the victims of landslide.

Situation Report by National Disaster Coordinating Council as of 5:00PM, 20 February 2006
The Philippine Government received a total of PhP44,950,650.00 worth of donations (P37,068,000.00 foreign assistance/pledges and P7,882,650.00 local assistance/pledges) in terms of financial assistance, relief goods, medicines and medical supplies, services and manpower for the victims of landslide in Brgy. Guinsaugon .

Situation Report by National Disaster Coordinating Council as of 8:00AM, 20 February 2006
A total of 3,268 families composed of 10,342 persons coming from the sixteen (16) barangays of St. Bernard were affected.

Situation Report by National Disaster Coordinating Council as of 6:00PM, 18 February 2006
A total of 1,432 casualties were reported: 50 dead (35 were identified), 20 injured and 953 missing; survivors 409.

Situation Report by National Disaster Coordinating Council as of 6:00PM, 17 February 2006
There were 3 barangays affected, however, Barangay Guin saungon was worst affected. The continuous rain for the past one week was the immediate cause of the landslide. It is a rainfall-induced landslide. Southern Leyte received about 4 times more than the normal rainfall (478mm vs. 137mm). The area is located along the fault zone but the 2.6M earthquake occurred only after the landslide. Thus, it did not trigger the landslide.

Pictures

Philippine National Disaster Coordinating Council
Landslides in Brgy Guinsaugon, Southern Leyte

Reuters AlertNet 2006/02/19
PHOTOS: Survivors pulled from Philippines landslide

Reuters AlertNet 2006/02/18
Soldiers look for survivors after a mudslide in central Philippines