Posted on 11/30/2006 8:09:30 PM PST by HAL9000
(2nd UPDATE) MUDFLOWS from the slopes of the Mayon volcano, triggered by heavy rains from typhoon "Reming" (international codename: Durian) buried at least eight villages, killing up to 20 people and prompting search and rescue operations for an unspecified number of missing, local and disaster officials said Friday.But the Associated Press, quoting a report by Legazpi City Mayor Noel Rosal, said that up to 100 people may have been killed or injured in one village after it was swamped by rain-soaked volcanic debris.
Padang is on the foothills of the volcano, which erupted in July, depositing millions of tons of rocks and ash on its slopes, Rosal said.
Albay Governor Fernando Gonzales could not immediately give an estimate of the number of affected residents in Legazpi and the municipalities of Daraga and Sto. Domingo, which he said could be "thousands."
Gonzales said at least 18 people were confirmed dead -- 10 in Culiat village in Daraga and eight in Basud village, Sto. Domingo.
"These are very big and very heavy mudflows. It buried many houses," Gonzales said in a phone interview.
The mudflows were formed after rains washed down sediments and boulders deposited from previous eruptions on the Mayon slopes, said Renato Solidum, director of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).
"These are very old deposits, not from the 2006 eruption, which were mobilized by the rains," Solidum told reporters on the side of a National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) meeting in Camp Aguinaldo.
The most recent Mayon eruption involved only lava flows, which have hardened and could not be washed down by the rains, he said.
Solidum said scientists have yet to determine if the mudflow could be considered lahar.
Lahar is composed of at least 20 percent sediment by volume, anything less is considered mudflows, he said.
In an Agence France-Presse report from Legazpi, Cedric Daep, the provincial head of relief operations, said from 17 to 20 people were killed as the mudslide reached as high as the rooftops in the nearby town of Daraga.
Relief officials are also searching for an unspecified number of missing, Daep said.
Daraga Mayor Jerry Jucian said that "there are still a lot of missing, still a lot of bodies being dug out."
Unconfirmed radio reports put the missing toll into the hundreds but rescue officials said these numbers could not be confirmed.
Rescue efforts were being hampered by storm damage which has knocked out electricity, telephone lines and even water services throughout much of the Bicol peninsula which includes Legazpi and Daraga, according to the AFP report.
Jucian said volcanic ash from the slopes of nearby Mayon volcano had mixed with rain from “Reming” to cause deadly landslides.
Governor Gonzales and Mayor Jucian said roads to the affected areas have been blocked by rocks washed down by the mudflow, floods, and landslides.
In a separate interview, Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Administrator Glen Rabonza said "Reming’s" rains washed down debris from the volcano's slopes causing lahar flows.
"The lahar then flowed to the rivers, causing them to overflow and reach the villages," Rabonza said.
Regional police head Chief Superintendent Victor Buco said that search and rescue operations were going on but added that many people had already been evacuated.
Legazpi City's airport was shut down as debris littered the runway and the windows and part of the roof of terminal had been destroyed by the storm.
“Reming” had weakened as it passed near Bicol late Thursday, packing maximum winds of 150 kilometers (93 miles) per hour. It was charted before dawn Friday near the island of Mindoro, moving west at a much slower rate.
God help them. Mudflows are horrible, and certainly the suffering is great...
God of Earth and Gale, God of Fire and Flood, have mercy on your people. May God guide the hands of the rescuers, and may the people have hope in the face of heartache. I pray it, in Jesus name...
(4th UPDATE) Mayon mudflows kill 146 in Albay
At least 146 people were swept to their deaths and hundreds more were feared dead Friday after rivers of mud and volcanic ash swamped villages in Legaspi City in Albay, officials said.
The mudslides triggered by super typhoon Durian's torrential rains reached as high as rooftops as they poured down from Mount Mayon volcano, according to witnesses.
Rescue teams were hampered by blocked roads and swollen rivers as they tried to reach many of the villages around the still active volcano.
Provincial relief official Cedric Daep said that 108 bodies were retrieved in the towns and villages of Daraga, Busay and Santo Domingo.
He warned the toll could shoot up even further amid unconfirmed reports of large numbers of dead in the village of Padang.
Sen. Richard Gordon, the Philippine National Red Cross chairman, said 50 bodies were recovered in Barangay Padang in Legaspi City and 70 in barangays Tagas and Binitayan in Daraga town. He said that 26 people were confirmed killed in Barangay Basud in Sto. Domingo town.
A report from the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) at noon said 100 people were reported missing in Daraga town and 13 others in Sto. Domingo.
In an interview over ANC, Albay Gov. Fernando Gonzalez said rescue teams deployed to the affected villages confirmed that 108 bodies have been retrieved.
Gonzalez said most of the recovered bodies were from barangays Cullat, Busay, Cagsawa, Malubago and Binitayan in Daraga town.
"We are getting reports that there are more and more casualties," Gonzales said, adding that he expected the death toll to rise as more local officials reported in on the damage their communities had sustained.
Gonzalez said several teams from the Navy, Army, Air Force, National Police and other local volunteers continue to scour the eight villages for survivors.
Administrator Glenn Rabonza of the Office of Civil Defense said Gonzalez had asked the agency for 200 body bags to be brought near the affected areas.
ABS-CBN correspondent David Oro reported that President Arroyo, who visited the National Disaster Coordinating Council office in Quezon City, was saddened after being briefed of the situation in Albay. Mrs. Arroyo ordered the military to assist medical teams in reaching submerged villages.
The volcanic ash on the slopes of Mayon combined with heavy rains from the typhoon to form the mudslides which reached up to the rooftops in Daraga town, officials said.
"There are still a lot of missing, still a lot of bodies being dug out," the town's mayor Jerry Jucian said.
Gonzalez said the mudflow came from the eastern and southeastern slopes of Mount Mayon Thursday afternoon due to heavy rains brought on by typhoon Reming (international codename Durian).
He said the provincial disaster coordinating council has deployed eight teams to conduct rescue and retrieval operations in the affected villages.
Around 30,000 residents of villages on the slopes of Mayon had been forced to evacuate in August when the volcano showed signs of erupting. They returned home in September after it simmered down.
Rescue efforts Friday were being hampered by storm damage which knocked out electricity, telephone lines and even water services across much of the Bicol peninsula which includes Legaspi and Daraga.
"Its a really bad situation here," the governor said.
Roads were blocked by rocks washed down by the mudflow and it was hard just to communicate with rural areas, he added.
The military was waiting for the weather to clear to bring helicopters into the affected area.
The civil defense office said a total of 2,840 or 13,928 people were evacuated from 16 municipalities and three cities in Bicol and Southern Tagalog.
Legaspi City's airport was shut down as debris littered the runway and the windows and part of the roof of the terminal were destroyed by the storm. The power outage also knocked out the control tower.
Large parts of Legaspi City were flooded, the civil defense office said.
"Only the roofs can be seen in these barangays. Maharlika [Highway] is closed now because of debris from the mudflow and boulders," Gonzalez said.
Elsewhere in the country, at least one person was killed in the town of Canaman, Camarines Sur after being hit by a piece of metal roofing blown off by the typhoon, the civil defense office added. Salve Almasar, 33, was killed while 64 people were injured in Canaman.
In a separate interview, Legaspi City Mayor Noel Rosal said he received reports that six students drowned in floodwaters. The students were reportedly staying near a river in the city.
PCG lifts ban on sea travel
The Philippine Coast Guard lifted a ban on sea travel after typhoon Reming moved toward the South China Sea before noon Friday.
Rear Admiral Damian Carlos said all seafaring vessels are allowed to go to typhoon-affected areas including the Bicol region.
He said PCG will deploy a helicopter and search and rescue vessel in Albay where large numbers of dead were reported following a major mudflow caused by Reming.
A PCG crisis management team said at least 5,000 passengers were stranded in various piers in Bicol.
Moving out of RP
Reming left Mindoro before noon Friday and was moving west on its way to the South China Sea, weather bureau PAGASA said.
As of 11 a.m., Reming was spotted 50 kilometers southwest of Lubang Island with maximum sustained winds of 150 km per hour and gustiness of up to 185 kph. It was moving west at a slow pace of 15 kph.
PAGASA forecasts said Reming will be over South China Sea by Saturday morning and out of the country's area of responsibility by Sunday.
Public storm signal number 3 was still up over Occidental Mindoro and Lubang Island.
Signal number 2 remained over Calamian Group of Island, Oriental Mindoro, Batangas and Cavite while signal number 1 was declared over Laguna, Bataan, southern Zambales and Metro Manila.
Reming entered the country Thursday as a super typhoon through Catanduanes with maximum sustained winds of 190 kph and gustiness of up to 225 kph.
It was the strongest typhoon to hit the country this year.
The Philippines is still recovering from the impact of typhoon Paeng (international name Cimaron), the strongest cyclone to hit the nation in more than 10 years, which left 38 dead or missing in late October.
In September, Manila was hit by typhoon Milenyo (international name Xangsane), which caused widespread damage and cut off electricity in many parts of the capital for days.
By the time Milenyo left the Philippines there were more than 200 people dead and a damages bill running into the millions of dollars. With a report from AFP and Reuters
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