Rescue workers yesterday searched a sea of mud in vain for survivors of a massive landslide that killed up to 1,800 people, as officials worried about a repeat of the disaster.
Two US warships and 1,000 Marines were steaming to Leyte island in the eastern Philippines, where 11 villages were evacuated in the same area where the farming village of Guinsaugon was wiped out on Friday when half a mountain came crashing down after two weeks of torrential downpours.
Hopes were fading fast of finding anyone alive in the 40-hectare stretch of mud that was 10m deep in places.
"No one alive has been found today, only the dead," said Joselito Rabi, a provincial social worker.
Efforts focused on a swamped elementary school, with unconfirmed reports that some of the 250 students and teachers sent cellphone text messages to relatives. Sixty soldiers were dispatched to the scene in the morning, but had found nothing but bodies as dark fell.
"As of last [Friday] night, many received text messages from those trapped in the school," Southern Leyte Governor Rosette Lerias said.
"They have reportedly closed all windows and doors to stop mud and water from coming in," Lerias said.
"The operations will continue through the night," she added.
The search was complicated by heavy morning downpours, the threat that the adjacent mountain remained unstable and the possibility that 752 troops, firefighters and volunteers could get sucked down into the soft, shifting mud.
The situation was so dangerous that most would-be volunteers were kept out of the area, and a no-fly zone was established over the site because of fears that helicopters' downwash could set off a fresh landslide.
Weather forecasts said a low-pressure area over the Pacific Ocean about 900km southeast of Leyte was likely to generate rain over the landslide zone later yesterday and today before the weather improved.
Only 57 people have been plucked from the mud -- none yesterday -- out of a population of 1,857.
A Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) official said yesterday that Taiwan will donate US$100,000 to aid the relief effort.
In addition to the cash aid, MOFA Spokesman Michel Lu (
The medical emergency kits can meet the needs of 3,000 people for a one-and-a-half-month period, Lu said, adding that the government will continue offering help to the Philippines in cooperation with non-governmental organizations.
also see stories:
Search teams face morbid task
Geologists had warned on Leyte mudslide danger
'Our village is gone, everything was buried'
MISINFORMATION: The generated content tends to adopt China’s official stance, such as ‘Taiwan is currently governed by the Chinese central government,’ the NSB said Five China-developed artificial intelligence (AI) language models exhibit cybersecurity risks and content biases, an inspection conducted by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The five AI tools are: DeepSeek, Doubao (豆包), Yiyan (文心一言), Tongyi (通義千問) and Yuanbao (騰訊元寶), the bureau said, advising people to remain vigilant to protect personal data privacy and corporate business secrets. The NSB said it, in accordance with the National Intelligence Services Act (國家情報工作法), has reviewed international cybersecurity reports and intelligence, and coordinated with the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau and the National Police Agency’s Criminal Investigation Bureau to conduct an inspection of China-made AI language
BOOST IN CONFIDENCE: The sale sends a clear message of support for Taiwan and dispels rumors that US President Donald Trump ‘sold out’ the nation, an expert said The US government on Thursday announced a possible sale to Taiwan of fighter jet parts, which was estimated to cost about US$330 million, in a move that an expert said “sends a clear message of support for Taiwan” amid fears that Washington might be wavering in its attitude toward Taipei. It was the first announcement of an arms sale to Taiwan since US President Donald Trump returned to the White House earlier this year. The proposed package includes non-standard components, spare and repair parts, consumables and accessories, as well repair and return support for the F-16, C-130 and Indigenous Defense Fighter aircraft,
CHECKING BOUNDARIES: China wants to disrupt solidarity among democracies and test their red lines, but it is instead pushing nations to become more united, an expert said The US Department of State on Friday expressed deep concern over a Chinese public security agency’s investigation into Legislator Puma Shen (沈伯洋) for “secession.” “China’s actions threaten free speech and erode norms that have underpinned the cross-strait ‘status quo’ for decades,” a US Department of State spokesperson said. The Chongqing Municipal Public Security Bureau late last month listed Shen as “wanted” and launched an investigation into alleged “secession-related” criminal activities, including his founding of the Kuma Academy, a civil defense organization that prepares people for an invasion by China. The spokesperson said that the US was “deeply concerned” about the bureau investigating Shen
LIMITS: While China increases military pressure on Taiwan and expands its use of cognitive warfare, it is unwilling to target tech supply chains, the report said US and Taiwan military officials have warned that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) could implement a blockade within “a matter of hours” and need only “minimal conversion time” prior to an attack on Taiwan, a report released on Tuesday by the US Senate’s China Economic and Security Review Commission said. “While there is no indication that China is planning an imminent attack, the United States and its allies and partners can no longer assume that a Taiwan contingency is a distant possibility for which they would have ample time to prepare,” it said. The commission made the comments in its annual
RSS