MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The 6 pilgrims missing on the slopes of Mount Banahaw since Wednesday, March 19, have been found alive, including a 73-year-old man, according to the Quezon Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (MDRRMC).

They were found by a search and rescue team as they were leaving the mountain through the exit in Sariaya town in Quezon, said Audie dela Cruz of Region IV-A Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

The 6 were some 10 kilometers from the 50-hectare area burned by the massive fire but were still within the crater when the search and rescue team caught up with them, Assistant Park Superintendent Magtanggol Barrion told Rappler.

The pilgrims were not injured but were hungry and exhausted. They also had to put up with rain on Friday, March 21, and the strong winds up in the mountain.

They are now detained in the Sariaya police station as charges are being filed against them for trespassing in a restricted area of the mountain.

They crossed the lines established by Republic Act 9847 or the Mts Banahaw-San Cristobal Protected Landscape Act of 2009 which restricts mountaineers and pilgrims to certain areas of the mountain.

The 6 climbers may face a fine of P5,000 to P500,000 or imprisonment of up to 6 years.

Among them is a 73-year-old man who authorities feared the most for. The climbers also faced the possibility of getting hypothermia from the very cold temperatures on the mountain’s peak, said Park Superintendent Salud Pangan. Limited food and water supply would have also been a safety hazard.

On Thursday, a day after the blaze was first reported, 5 pilgrims were brought down the mountain and put under the custody of the police in Dolores, Quezon, the town where one of the jump-off points to Mt Banahaw can be found. Watch Rappler’s video report here.

The 5 had climbed with the 6 as one group seeking spiritual retreat on the mythical mountain, a popular pilgrimage site. They are part of a larger group called Hiwaga ng Bundok Banahaw.

Blesilda Clapano, one of the 5 earlier rescued, told Rappler that they had been on the mountain since Sunday. They wanted to climb that week to avoid the hundreds of pilgrims and climbers drawn to the mountain every Holy Week.

The 6 planned to set up an altar in a site on the mountain called Rainbow where one of them wanted to make a wish. So they left the 5 in a trail called Tatlong Tangke (Three Tanks) – a part of the mountain allowed to visitors – and went further up.

“We determined that the group of 5 were outside the restricted area but the 6 certainly committed a violation because they climbed in a restricted area,” said Pangan.

Permanent closure

Because of the blaze, which authorities still believe to be man-made, the government is considering closing the mountain from visitors for good.

Mt Banahaw has been closed since 2004 to allow its flora and fauna to rehabilitate. Its popularity as a pilgrimage site and trekking destination wreaked havoc in its ecosystem. Only some areas in the foothills are open to climbers and religious groups. The ban is supposed to be lifted in 2015.

“The DENR is now studying the permanent closure of Mount Banahaw to the public, particularly mountaineers and pilgrims, to avoid future incidents of forest fires stemming from human activities,” said Environment Secretary Ramon Paje in a press statement.

Park Superintendent Salud Pangan, who is in charge of the protection and management of natural parks Mt Banahaw and Mt San Cristobal agrees Banahaw should be closed.

“I would recommend its permanent closure to visitors, except for research purposes. We will only religious groups to enter the Pwesto complex for their religious practices. Other than that, we will not open any other part of Banahaw.”

Mt Banahaw is home to many rare flora and fauna such as the Rafflesia, a parasitic flowering plant found only in Southeast Asia, and the Philippine cloud rat. Its water supplies more than 10 local government units in Quezon and Laguna. – Rappler.com