“Bayanihan” of military and local residents clears landslide debris at isolated San Jose de Buan town

By Philippine Information Agency (PIA 8)
January 19, 2011

TACLOBAN CITY  –  At around 10:00 o’clock in the morning of January 18, 2010, the troopers of the 34th Infantry Battalion of the 8th Infantry Division of the Philippine Army and the local residents of San Jose de Buan, Samar, voiced shouts of joy for the same reason.

In the spirit of the bayanihan tradition that Filipinos are known for, they were able to clear the remaining landslide debris from Barangay Hibacaan to the Poblacion of the isolated San Jose de Buan town.

Major General Mario Chan, through a text message to the Philippine Information Agency in Eastern Visayas said that three KM450 off-road trucks were scheduled to bring the relief goods from GMA Kapuso Foundation up to Barangay Babaclayon at 7:00 o’clock in the evening of January 18.

There, they will be met by the military troops and the local residents who will carry and bring the relief goods by foot to Hibacaan where trucks of the 34th Infantry Battalion will be waiting.

This means that the troops and the local residents who will carry the relief good will have to walk about ten kilometers stretch of dirt roads.

For security reasons, the troops and the local volunteers have to wait for the morning of January 19, to go to Barangay Babaclayon to get the relief goods, Major General Chan added.

This is the best that the military can do for now because of the rainy weather situation and because of the two bridges which were washed out, the commanding officer said.

It would be recalled that the municipality of San Jose de Buan in Samar province has been isolated since January 8.

The situation was found out through a report received via e-mail by the Philippine Information Agency on January 11 from Mr. Raffy Llauderes, OIC Municipal Agriculturist of San Jose de Buan.

The e-mail report was forwarded to the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council of Eastern Visayas that same night it was received by PIA.