Rescuers saved an 11-year-old boy in Baybay City, Leyte, who managed to survive a landslide caused by the tropical storm “Agaton” by hiding in a refrigerator overnight.
Local authorities said that they found the boy lying inside the refrigerator during a rescue operation in the barangay (village) of Kantagnos.
The child was reportedly at home with his family when the deadly landslide struck on April 15 — the second to ravage the community following one that had taken place the day before.
The Philippine Coast Guard uploaded a video of the rescue efforts.
Reports said that the child had suffered with multiple fractures but was now recovering at a hospital.
According to GMA News, the boy’s uncle, Juanito Orellano, said that another relative had attempted to rescue the child but the boy sent him away as the landslide was fast approaching.
Thinking quickly, he decided to hide inside the refrigerator in a brave attempt to survive the calamity.
Orellano said that his nephew’s parents were both killed and buried in the landslide.
About 69 people are still missing in the city, according to the latest figures from the Baybay City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, with barangay Kantagnos reporting the largest number of missing people.
Meanwhile, the national disaster management bureau said that the total death toll caused by “Agaton” has now reached 172.
