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On February 6, 2024, a massive landslide struck Masara, a small village located in the Municipality of Maco in the province of Davao De Oro, due to the nonstop heavy rains that began in February 2 in almost all the provinces in southern Philippines. Said disaster had severely affected more than 7,000 people in the locality, with 98 casualties who were recovered in a series of search, rescue and retrieval operations conducted by authorities. According to the Local Government, as of February 27, a total of eight people in Masara were still missing.
Among the first responders in the said landslide incident were the personnel of the Davao De Oro Police Provincial Office, Revitalized-Pulis sa Barangay Cluster 8B led by Police Staff Sergeant Roderick Obeja, together with the APEX Mining Emergency Response team. Despite the inherent dangers, the police officers swiftly responded to the site, significantly rescuing several individuals who, at that very moment, had been trapped under the debris. The team also tirelessly went door to door, urging other residents in the vicinity for immediate evacuations while threat assessment was still ongoing.
On February 21, 2024, the Police Regional Office 11 led by Police Brigadier General Alden B. Delvo, spearheaded a relief operation dubbed “Pagkakaisa para sa Masara,” to provide additional support and assistance to the residents of Masara, especially those who were heavily affected with the landslide. This was made possible through the PNP’s Adopt-A-Region Program in collaboration with Police Regional Offices 10, 12 and BAR. These neighboring PROs successfully provided significant number of goods and assistance, cash and essentials, and other supplies to PRO 11.
On March 3, 2024, another set of relief goods were sent to PRO 11, through the Philippine Air Force, consisting of 65 sacks of rice, 60 boxes of meat loaves and five boxes of sardines with a total amount of Php183,000.00. Said donations were gathered from the PNP Command Group, P-Staff, D-Staff, NSUs and other PROs in Luzon.
PBGen Delvo expressed his sincere gratitude to the different PNP Offices involved in the relief efforts, citing that the entire PRO 11 deeply appreciated the assistance for its local communities, especially during this difficult time. He also added that if situations dictates for other regions to face the same experiences, PRO 11 will, indeed, extend its hands to offer similar help and assistance.
In such trying times, the Nation’s Peacekeeper with its entire ranks joins the plight of the Filipino people, especially the victims of the landslide, by providing them immediate assistance and support; as well as initiating appropriate disaster response and recovery programs in collaboration with other government agencies to aid every affected family in rebuilding their homes and in starting more sustainable, safer, and peaceful lives.
