Boy Survives Agaton Landslide By Hiding Inside Old Refrigerator For Days

An 11-year-old boy in the Philippine province of Leyte managed to survive a landslide caused by a recent storm after he was placed inside a refrigerator, according to reports.

Authorities discovered CJ Hasme lying inside a refrigerator during a rescue operation conducted in the Kantagnos neighborhood of Baybay City in the wake of tropical storm Megi, known locally as Agaton, Philippine media outlet GMA Network reported.

"I am hungry," Hasme said upon being rescued, according to a statement released by the Baybay City Fire Station (BCFS).

SFO2 Romulo G. Mascariñas offered the boy water and asked him where his companions were, to which Hasme replied, "I am the only one left, there is no one with me anymore," with "a blank expression in his eyes," the statement read.

Mascariñas and a member of the Philippine Coast Guard then took the boy to a safer place, according to the BCFS.

Hasme reportedly entered the refrigerator after his uncle was unable to rescue him from an approaching landslide.

"When his uncle was supposed to rescue him, he sent him away because a big landslide was coming, and it was very dangerous. CJ was already left there, so he got into the refrigerator," another uncle, Juanito Orellano, explained.

A photo of Hasme’s rescue has since reportedly gone viral, with the BCFS saying he has been nicknamed the “Boy in the Ref.”

He is currently recovering in the hospital after suffering multiple fractures to his body, according to Orellano.

Both of Hasme's parents as well as one of his siblings were reportedly killed in a landslide, while another sibling survived by holding on to a container after being swept by currents.

"We try not to let CJ know because it might affect his health, but maybe he knows because at his age, he seems to understand," Orellano was quoted as saying.

A total of 175 people died from floods and landslides caused by Megi, while another eight were left injured, according to the most recent situation report released by the Philippines' National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).

Around 110 people were still missing, the agency said.

The NDRRMC is considering the possibility of ceasing search and rescue operations, according to agency spokesperson Mark Timbal.

"There are a lot of considerations to be taken into account by our teams. For example, the situation on the ground, the possibility of getting another survivor, and also the safety of our search and rescue teams," he said.

Megi has caused 257 million Philippine pesos' ($4.9 million) worth of damages across affected regions in the Philippines, NDRRMC estimated.