Wakes held for three Pulangbato landslide victims at sports complex

A devastating landslide triggered by heavy rains in Sitio Kandarong Riverside, Barangay Pulangbato, Cebu City, claimed the lives of three family members on Friday, October 9, 2026, and displaced dozens of residents. The disaster, which struck just after noon while the victims were eating lunch, destroyed homes and prompted widespread emergency evacuations, Cebu Daily News reported.

Tragedy Strikes a Family Lunch in Pulangbato

The landslide buried a house occupied by four relatives, leaving a 60-year-old grandmother and two young children dead. The victims were identified as Judith Bonghanoy, 60; Xian Kyre Caballero, 5; and Kyden Andamon, 6. According to Superbalita Cebu, Rio Tatoy, a 33-year-old cousin of the survivors, stated that the family tried to flee when the soil gave way, but the falling earth overtook them.

Superbalita Cebu
It was really because of the heavy downpour. Who would have thought this would happen? We’ve lived here a long time. We’re natives here. We didn’t expect something like this. The soil would slide, but only a little, never this bad, Tatoy said in Cebuano.

Rescue operations lasted for nearly six hours, heavily hampered by persistent rain and continuous ground movement on the hillside. Councilor Dave Tumulak, who chairs the city council’s committee on disaster and risk management, noted that unstable ground slowed down the response efforts of local teams. Rescuers from the Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CCDRRMO) and the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) Cebu City recovered five-year-old Xian at 1:45 p.m. He was rushed to a hospital but later died during emergency treatment.

Jolly Pearl Andamon, 38, who is Kyden’s mother and the mother of the five-year-old boy, survived the tragedy. Rescued alive shortly after the first child, she was rushed to a hospital for treatment. Six-year-old Kyden was recovered without signs of life at 4:24 p.m., while the grandmother, Judith, was pulled from the debris at 5:43 p.m., concluding search operations at 5:55 p.m., as detailed by BusinessMirror.

Displacement and Relief Operations at the Sports Complex

As of Sunday, October 11, the wakes for the three family members are being held at the Barangay Pulangbato Sports Complex. The gymnasium is simultaneously serving as a temporary evacuation center for families driven from their homes by the disaster. Barangay data recorded 56 families, comprising 210 individuals from 39 households, sheltering at the site by Saturday, October 10, while the City Department of Social Welfare Services (DSWS) initially tallied 35 affected families or 137 individuals.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Field Office 7, in coordination with local government units, distributed 47 modular tents, 47 ready-to-eat food packs, and 141 malongs, alongside financial assistance and groceries delivered with the help of a local priest. Meanwhile, the Cebu City government provided packed meals, hot meals for three days, water dispensers, and portable toilets. Local officials have also recommended providing P20,000 in financial assistance to the family of each deceased victim and another P20,000 to owners of totally damaged structures.

Engineers Inspect Hillside for Ongoing Ground Movement

Residents have not yet received a definite date for returning home as local engineering teams and personnel from the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) Region 7 inspect the hillside for ongoing ground movement. Neighbor Edgar Arias told reporters that he had observed signs of unstable soil and a shifting upper slope prior to the collapse. Jhomer Eclarino, chief weather forecaster at PAGASA in the Visayas, attributed the heavy rainfall to the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), which brings continued weather risks to the region.

The incident follows a history of vulnerability in the mountain village, where a rain-triggered landslide in Sitio Riverside displaced at least six families in August 2023. City officials and barangay leaders continue to coordinate safety assessments to determine whether residents can safely return to their homes or if permanent relocation is required.