Mountain threatens to bury alive 100 families

700 evacuate danger site 

By AldwinQuitasol

VILLAVICIOSA, Abra – With heavy rain last week, mountain is about to collapse here threatening to bury more than 100 families living below even as some 140 families or more than 700 individuals evacuated the area due to huge landslide at the height of Typhoon Ineng.

Indigenous people belonging to the Maeng Tribe here are starting  new lives since they finished building makeshift tents to serve as their new homes in the evacuation site where they sought refuge not so far away from the land where they were born and grew up.

Evacuees from Tamac had no choice but leave their village and go to safer grounds since week of August until, days after a massive landslide buried around five hectares of their rice fields and houses on August 24.

Village member Ariel Martez said these prompted the people to gather their things and dismantle their houses to get the materials to be used in building their new houses at the evacuation site.

Rains brought by Typhoon “Ineng” caused the weakening of the mountain slopes where the farms of the tribe are located.

After the ground movement, geological engineers of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) Cordillera conducted a geological survey together with the local government unit of Villaviciosa.

According to the findings of the engineers, there were huge soil cracks in the mountain slope just few hundred meters away from the village below.

They predicted a possible larger ground movement could bury the entire village.

On Sept. 17, members of advocate groups led by Sulong Katribu and the United Church of Christ of the Philippines – Abra went to the evacuation area and distributed relief goods and needed materials for the temporary shelters.

“Nu kas-ano ay menrugi kasin si biag isna “new” Barangay Tamac, ay tuanentay back to zero nan kasasaad mi ita,” (We have no idea how to start our new life here in our new barangay because we have to start again from zero) Martez said.

He appealed for more donations and aides in behalf of his tribesmates.

The Cordillera Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council headed by Office of Civil Defense Alex Uy , in partnership with the provincial government, local government units and disaster risk reduction management councils earlier met with affected folks to discuss contingency measures for the families. 

For the relocation program, the Abra Provincial LGU and the municipal government of Villaviciosa will take the lead and CRDRRMC government agency members will also bring their program such as the Core Shelter Program and Food for Work of DSWD and DILG’s SalinTubig (Sagana at Ligtas na Tubig para sa lahat) Program, among others.

In terms of recovery and rehabilitation, Uy said they requested non-food and food items for the affected families at their central office.

The DSWD, aside from family food packs, also provides Food for Work program and cash assistance to those with damaged houses. 

For DPWH, road clearing projects were implemented.

Another partner for rehabilitation in the area is Philippine Red Cross – Abra chapter, which is helping the DSWD in providing tents, food packs and collapse water containers to  the affected families, as well as in bringing in nurses that provide health services. -- With reports from Carlito Dar and Ivy Carasi