Diversion Road in Davao City still closed

THE motoring public should expect being stuck in horrendous traffic some more as the road closure for Diversion Road has been extended until further notice to allow the conduct of disaster mitigating procedures in the area.

"Ongoing ang pagtanggal sa boulder sa top portion sa Shrine Hills para atong i-establish ang slope, ginatanggal pa ang bato so currently, closed pa ang Diversion for any traffic (The removal of the boulders on top of Shrine hills are currently ongoing to allow us to establish the slope. Hence, the Diversion Road is closed for any traffic)," Rodrigo Bustillo, Davao City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office operations officer, said in an interview with SunStar Davao on Sunday, October 8.

He said that the removal of boulder is done to achieve controlled erosion. They also eye to include the removal of boulders at the cracked area at Shrine Hills.

Bustillo said the procedure is also taking time since the boulders are hard and cannot be easily broken down by the backhoe.

He said they still cannot give the exact day that the closure at Diversion road will be lifted.

Bustillo said other concerned agencies -- Davao City Traffic and Transport Management Office, City Engineer's Office, and the Department of Public Works and Highways -- are also still conducting assessment and might come up with a recommendation on a time where vehicles can pass the area.

He said residents have evacuated the landslide zone and as of Saturday a total of 17 families transferred to the evacuation center at Los Amigos, some went to their relatives while some transferred to other areas far from the impact area.

In a statement on Sunday, the Davao City Information Office (CIO) said the Diversion Road will remain closed on Monday, October 9, because the portion of Shrine Hills where the landslide occurred has not been declared safe for passage by the engineers due to the clearing operations.

“Classes are not suspended. The public is advised to leave for work and school earlier than usual, and plan travel schedules accordingly to avoid traffic inconvenience. The next update will be on October 9 at 5 p.m.,” CIO said in a statement.