Dozens buried after massive landfill collapse in Philippines, death toll rises

Nevin Al Sukari - Sana'a - Photos released by police yesterday showed a massive mound of trash atop a hill directly behind buildings that a city information officer had told AFP also contained administrative offices. — AFP pic

MANILA, Jan 10 — Hard hat-wearing rescue workers and backhoes dug through rubble in search of survivors today in the shadow of a mountain of garbage that buried dozens of landfill employees in the central Philippines, killing at least four.

About 50 sanitation workers were buried when refuse toppled onto them Thursday from what a city councillor estimated was a height of 20 storeys at the Binaliw Landfill, a privately operated facility in Cebu City.

Rescuers were now facing the danger of further collapse as they navigated the wreckage, Cebu rescuer Jo Reyes told AFP. 

“Operations are ongoing as of the moment. It is continuous. (But) from time to time, the landfill is moving, and that will temporarily stop the operation,” she said.

“We have to stop for a while for the safety of our rescuers.”

Information from the disaster site has been emerging slowly, with city employees citing the lack of signal from the dumpsite, which serviced Cebu and other surrounding communities.

Joel Garganera, a Cebu City council member, told AFP that as of 10 am the death toll from the disaster had climbed to four, with 34 still missing.

“The four casualties were inside the facility when it happened... They have these staff houses inside where most people who were buried stayed,” he said.

“It’s very difficult on the part of the rescuers, because there are really heavy (pieces of steel), and every now and then, the garbage is moving because of the weight from above,” Garganera said.

“We are hoping against hope here and praying for miracles,” he said when asked about the timeline for rescue efforts.

“We cannot just jump to the retrieval (of bodies), because there are a lot of family members who are within the property waiting for any positive result.”

At least 12 employees have so far been pulled alive from the garbage and hospitalised.

‘Alarming’ height 

“Every now and then when it rains, there are landslides happening around the city of Cebu... how much more (dangerous is that) for a landfill or a mountain that is made of garbage?” Garganera said in a phone call with AFP.

“The garbage is like a sponge, they really absorb water. It doesn’t (take) a rocket scientist to say that eventually, the incident will happen.”

Garganera described the height from which the trash fell as “alarming”, estimating the top of the pile had stood 20 storeys above the area struck.

Drivers had long complained about the dangers of navigating the steep road to the top, he added.

Photos released by police yesteday showed a massive mound of trash atop a hill directly behind buildings that a city information officer had told AFP also contained administrative offices.

Garganera noted that the disaster was a “sad, double whammy” for the city, as the facility was the “lone service provider” for Cebu and adjacent communities.

The landfill “processes 1,000 tons of municipal solid waste daily”, according to the website of its operator, Prime Integrated Waste Solutions.

Calls and emails to the company have so far gone unreturned.

Rita Cogay, who operates a compactor at the site, told AFP on yesterday she had stepped outside to get a drink of water just moments before the building she had been in was crushed.

“I thought a helicopter had crashed. But when I turned, it was the garbage and the building coming down,” the 49-year-old said. — AFP