‘Racing against time’: Death toll rises after Philippines rubbish site collapse

Rescuers wearing hard hats and crews with backhoes dug through rubble to search for survivors Saturday in the shadow of a mountain of trash that buried dozens of landfill workers and killed at least six in the central Philippines.

About 50 sanitation workers were buried at the Binaliw Landfill, a privately run facility in Cebu City, on Thursday when garbage from 20 stories high fell on them, a city councilman estimated.

Cebu rescuer Jo Reyes told AFP on Saturday that rescuers were now in danger of further collapse as they navigated still-moving debris.

“As of now, the work is ongoing. Constantly. (But) from time to time the landfill moves, which will temporarily stop the operation,” he said.

Cebu City councilor Dave Tumulak, chairman of the city’s disaster council, told AFP that two more bodies were unearthed on Saturday by crews working 24-hour shifts.

With this discovery, the death toll increased to 6, while 32 people are still missing.

“We found two more bodies, but we can’t pick them up because of the heavy metal beam falling on them, so we try to cut the metal,” he said.

To assist in the rescue operation, 20 trucks equipped with hydraulic cranes and special cutting attachments were being dispatched to assist rescuers who had to crawl to reach areas blocked by debris.

“Our rescuers are struggling because the metal beams are large,” he said. “(The trucks) allow metal to be removed and our rescuers can navigate the area more efficiently.

“We’re hoping we can save someone alive… We’re racing against time, so we’re deployed 24/7.”

So far, 12 employees have been pulled alive from the garbage and taken to hospital.

Cebu City councilman Joel Garganera told AFP on Saturday that many families were at the scene waiting for news about the fate of their relatives.

“We are hopeful here and praying for miracles,” he said.

The councilor described the height at which the trash fell as “alarming” and estimated that the top of the pile was 20 stories higher than the area hit.

“Every now and then when it rains, there are landslides around Cebu City… How much more (dangerous) than that for a landfill or a mountain of garbage?” said Garganera.

“Trash is like a sponge, it really absorbs water. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to tell you it’s going to happen eventually.”

He added that drivers have long complained about the dangers of climbing the steep road to the top.

Photos released by police on Friday showed a huge pile of garbage atop a hill just behind buildings that a city information officer told AFP contained administrative offices.

The facility also includes staff housing “where most of the buried people stayed,” Garganera said.

He noted that the disaster was a “double whammy” for the city since the plant was the “sole service provider” for Cebu and neighboring communities.

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

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

Rita Cogay, who operates a compactor at the site, told AFP on Friday that she went out to drink water moments before the building she was in collapsed.

“I thought a helicopter had crashed. But when I returned, I saw garbage and the building collapsed,” the 49-year-old said.