THE owner of the house atop a landslide-prone area in Sitio Garahe, Barangay Busay in Cebu City voluntarily demolished their home to prevent further soil erosion.
Nagiel Bañacia, head of the City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office said that Michael Aleman, a German national, told him last Tuesday afternoon that he had decided to demolish his house.
“It will take time for the whole structure to be removed, but demolition work has started,” he said.
Since this is not the first landslide to hit the area, Bañacia advised Aleman to build a retaining wall in the area to prevent landslides.
Last January, 11 vehicles were hit by falling debris along the road in Sitio Garahe after a heavy downpour at dawn caused the soil to loosen.
Bañacia explained that even without the house, the area may still remain vulnerable to soil erosion, and debris may end up falling on the road without a retaining wall to secure the area.
The road going to Mountain View Nature Resort now remains closed to motorists.
Bañacia said road access will remain closed, until the area is deemed safe for motorists and pedestrians. Meantime, the public is advised to take a diversion road in Barangay Babag to ensure safety.
In a separate interview, executive assistant to the mayor Francisco Fernandez said voluntary demolitions done by property owners, especially in landslide-prone areas, are welcome developments.
“That’s positive because if they won’t do it now and wait until their house is destroyed, that will block the road. In fact, if they did not voluntarily demolish it, the City Government would order the demolition and condemn the building,” he said. (RTF)