Blame it on the rains.
That in a nutshell, is how Capter John Tubo, supervising geologist for the Mines and Geosciences Bureau 11 (MGB 11), sees as the trigger to the deathly landslides in Barangay Masara in Davao de Oro.
Tubo bared on Monday the incessant rains and the presence of fault lines in Davao de Oro could be among the major contributory factors for the deadly Masara landslide.
“It was rain-induced. Grabe gyud ang ulan which is also the triggering mechanism. Next is the previous occurrences of earthquakes which is among the significant factors, steep ang terrain, weak ang geology due to materials nga naa sa area, because of the Philippine fault zone nga nitagos sa Davao de Oro area so it is expected nga kana nga province daghan ug landslides ug puwede pa magkaroon ug mga landslides. Naa pud ta mga fault lines nga nagapa-weaken sa geology sa area,” Tubo said during the Kapehan sa Dabaw at SM City Davao on Monday.
The MGB 11 together with the Office of Civil Defense 11 (OCD 11) conducted an aerial inspection of the area affected by the landslide.
Tubo reiterated that the Masara line is dangerous and mentioned the MGB 11 declaration in 2008 that the area is a no build zone.
“We reiterate the MGB 11 recommendation in 2008 na no build zone ang barangay Masara which would become effective through an ordinance from the LGU. We also conducted a geohazard mapping in 2011 and 2014 and updating in 2018. Ilang beses na po na-assess and the same pa rin ang aming recommendation, the relocation of the entire barangay Masara,” he said.
Meanwhile, Allan Mark Abanilla, geologist of MGB 11, reported that they already identified potential areas for relocation, however, still undergoing assessment.
“So far naa nata’y potential areas for relocation but we are still finalizing pa. Kaning Masara line delikado gyud siya in terms sa landslide. It’s also a challange for us to look for relocation sites because we have to study it further for long term habitation,” Tubo said.
