3 family members killed in Cebu City landslide amid heavy rains

Mig Anishi Zamora

Three members of a family, including two children, were killed after a landslide buried their home in Barangay Pulangbato, Cebu City, on Friday, October 9, following days of heavy rainfall.

The landslide struck Sitio Kandarong Riverside, prompting rescue and retrieval operations as local authorities began evacuating nearby residents amid fears of further soil collapse.

According to Rappler, rescuers recovered a five-year-old child at around 1:45 p.m., but the child later died while receiving emergency medical care.

A 38-year-old woman was rescued at approximately 2:26 p.m. and taken to a hospital, while a six-year-old child was pulled from the debris at 4:24 p.m. but was already dead.

The fourth victim, a 60-year-old woman, was recovered dead at approximately 5:43 p.m., bringing the death toll to three and leaving the hospitalized woman as the family’s sole survivor.

Cebu City Councilor Dave Tumulak, chairman of the City Council’s disaster management committee, said continuous rainfall and shifting soil hampered rescue efforts, making it difficult for responders to retrieve those trapped beneath the debris.

Pulangbato Barangay Councilor Kaven Seno said in an interview that heavy rains since the first week of October had softened the soil in the upland community, eventually triggering the landslide.

In an earlier afternoon update, Cebu City Mayor Nestor Archival urged residents near landslide-prone areas to remain vigilant and avoid obstructing rescue operations.

“Apan padayon gihapon ang search and retrieval operations kay aduna pa kitay mga kaigsuonan nga natabunan sa landslide,” Archival said while the search for the remaining victims was still underway.

Barangay officials also initiated evacuations, directing affected residents to the Pulangbato Gym as authorities assessed the threat of further landslides.

The incident came more than three years after previous landslides displaced residents in the same barangay, raising renewed concerns over the safety of communities living near unstable slopes.

In February 2023, 175 residents were ordered to evacuate after a landslide struck Sitio Riverside, while another incident in August of the same year forced at least nine families to evacuate.

Following the February 2023 incident, Pulangbato Barangay Councilor Clyde Limpag acknowledged that ground movement had repeatedly occurred in the area.

“Magsige gyud na’g lihok ang yuta diha, pero ginagmay ra ba, kato gyud ang grabe-grabe,” Limpag told The Freeman in March 2023, describing how the ground had frequently shifted in smaller movements before a more severe landslide.

In August 2023, the Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office also recommended declaring a former quarry site in Sitio Riverside a danger zone to prevent families from settling in the hazardous area.

Authorities have yet to establish whether Friday’s landslide occurred on the same slope or whether additional geological factors contributed to the collapse.

With all four victims recovered, authorities are now assessing the stability of nearby slopes and the need for further evacuations to prevent additional casualties.