Landslides Shut Key Bukidnon and Davao del Norte Mountain Roads After Days of Rain

Quick Answer

As of July 7, the Sitio Cabadiangan section in Talaingod, Davao del Norte is passable again, but the Sitio Balacayo section in San Fernando, Bukidnon remains closed to all vehicles.

Two landslides in two days

The first slide hit on Sunday morning, July 5, in Sitio Cabadiangan, Talaingod, Davao del Norte. It buried a section of the Kapalong to Talaingod to Valencia road under mud, rocks, and soil, and briefly cut one of the main links between the two provinces to all types of vehicles. Clearing crews reopened it later the same day.

The second came at dawn the next day, farther along the same corridor in Sitio Balacayo, Barangay Kalagangan, San Fernando, Bukidnon. A slope collapsed onto a stretch of a road widening project measuring about 228 meters, according to the local police. No casualties were reported in either event.

Two slides so close together, on the same route within about a day, marked an unusually sharp start to the wet season for a road already known for seasonal collapses.

The Kapalong to Talaingod to Valencia road threads through steep terrain that carries farm goods, passengers, and supplies between the uplands of Bukidnon and the lowlands of Davao del Norte. When it closes, there is no quick alternative that avoids the mountains.

What triggered them

Several days of rain had soaked the slopes before both collapses. Engineers reported water gushing down the mountain on Sunday, ahead of the slide that struck at dawn on Monday.

Disaster officials said landslides are common along this mountainous corridor between Bukidnon and Davao del Norte during the wet months, and warned that further rain keeps the risk high.

They urged motorists to check road advisories before traveling the corridor and to turn back at the first sign of falling rocks or mud, noting that slopes can give way with little warning while the ground stays saturated.

Residents living below the cleared slopes were told to stay alert for cracks or seeping water, common signs that a hillside may fail again.

Detours for motorists

The San Fernando disaster office advised drivers to take the Bukidnon-Davao, or BuDa, road through Quezon town while the closed section is cleared.

A second option routes traffic through Barangay Matupe toward the Paquibato District, though both alternatives add distance and travel time for freight and commuters.

Officials cautioned that the detours themselves cross hilly ground that can slide in heavy rain, and asked drivers to allow extra time rather than risk the blocked stretch.

When will the roads reopen

The San Fernando local government deployed heavy equipment alongside personnel from the Department of Public Works and Highways Bukidnon 1st District Engineering Office to remove the debris.

By Tuesday, DPWH in the Davao region reported that the Cabadiangan section near Ridge View Resort was open to all vehicles, while the Balacayo portion in Bukidnon stayed shut pending further work.

Crews aimed to reopen at least one lane quickly, though officials said a full repair of the buried section would take longer while engineers confirmed the slope above it had stopped moving.

The public works department kept equipment on standby at both sites in case fresh material came down, and local officials said they would update motorists through community radio and social media as each lane cleared.

A corridor already under strain

The detours matter more because a section of the highway in Sitio Kipolot, Barangay Palacapao in Quezon town collapsed on October 18, 2025, killing an elderly couple on a tricycle when the slope swept their vehicle away.

That earlier disaster pushed through traffic onto the San Fernando to Talaingod route, so the latest slides squeeze one of the region's main paths for moving goods and people.

The cost has been steep. Northern Mindanao has been losing an estimated 187 million pesos a day in delays and added transport expenses since that October collapse, according to earlier figures, and each new slide deepens the strain on the detour network.