Megi leaves trail of death, destruction in the Philippines

COTABATO CITY – Tropical storm Megi left a trail of death and destruction in the Philippines with officials saying at least two dozen people were killed in landslides and flash floods in the country.

BARMM-Central Mindanao Bureau Chief Mark Navales took these dramatic aerial photos from a Philippine Air Force-Tactical Operation Group 12 AgustaWestland AW139 - under Col. Marlon Hardello - where he was embedded during a recon and search and rescue flights over Maguindanao and nearby areas affected by Tropical storm Megi.

Leyte province was the hardest hit by the storm, also called by local weather experts as Agaton after officials said at least 22 villagers were buried alive following a massive landslide.

In the southern Philippines, dozens of villages in the provinces of North Cotabato and Maguindanao, including in Davao region, were also underwater. The water was so high that only roofs of houses were visible from above where Philippine Air Force choppers under the Tactical Operation Group 12 conducted reconnaissance flight and search and rescue operations.

Air Force Col. Marlon Hardello used the twin-engine AgustaWestland AW139 in the operations. The town of Pagalungan in Maguindanao was also among the flooded areas in the Muslim autonomous region, according to Benjamin Alip, of the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office.

“Ang sitwasyon ngayon dito sa Poblacion, particularly dito sa Sitio Tangila, ay lubog pa rin sa baha haggang ngayon. Ang tubig noong kasagsagan ng baha ay hanggang leeg, kahit humupa na ang tubig marami pa rin ang hindi nakakauwi.”

“Ang mga apektadong barangay dito sa munisipyo ng Pagalungan ay isang dosena noong April 7 and 8 - ito ay ang Barangay ng Bagu-enged, Poblacion, Layug, Linandangan, Galakit, Damalasak, Inug-og, Kudal, Kalbugan, Buliok at portion ng Kilangan, at ang Sitio  Kilangan,  Gadaganan, Baya at Talipasan na along Maridagao River lamang,” Alip told the Mindanao Examiner.

He said the culverts and riprap were also destroyed by the rampaging water that prevented heavy equipment from passing through.

One villager, Bai Kats Dalandas, appealed to the government to help them evacuate to safer areas. “Nananawagan ako sa gobyerno na sana matulungan po kami dito, kailangan namin ng tulong ninyo dito po sa aming lugar sa Pagalungan,” he said in a separate interview.  

Megi was the first storm to hit the country this year. (Mark Navales)