Authorities in the central Philippines have confirmed the death toll from last week’s catastrophic landfill collapse has climbed to 11 individuals, with fading hopes for locating survivors beneath the massive debris. The tragic incident occurred at the Binaliw landfill facility in Cebu City while approximately 100 workers were present on site during operations.
Emergency response teams have successfully extracted 12 injured persons from the wreckage, yet more than 20 individuals remain unaccounted for three days after the disaster. A local fire official previously indicated to AFP that survival prospects appear minimal given the immense volume of waste material that buried victims under tons of collapsing debris.
The catastrophe has triggered widespread demands for comprehensive investigations into both the immediate causes of the structural failure and broader systemic issues within the nation’s waste management infrastructure. Environmental regulators have subsequently mandated Prime Integrated Waste Solutions, Inc., the landfill’s operating company, to immediately cease all activities at the location.
According to Monday’s statement from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the operator must develop and submit a compliance strategy within a 90-day timeframe. The department further committed to conducting a thorough examination of the collapse’s origins and ensuring accountability for responsible entities.
Philippine legislators have joined the call for reforms, emphasizing the necessity to reevaluate national waste management protocols and sanitation workers’ occupational safety conditions. Senator Imee Marcos, who formally requested an investigation into the Binaliw facility’s operations, stated emphatically that ‘This should have never happened,’ noting that ‘We have seen similar tragedies before, yet the same dangers persist.’
Eyewitness Bienvinido Ranido, whose wife worked at the landfill and resided nearby, described the moment of catastrophe to Reuters: ‘I saw people fleeing from the site last week, saying the garbage exploded.’ His account continued: ‘I quickly took my motorcycle and rushed to the landfill. When I got there, I saw the collapsed building buried by garbage. I just screamed.’ Rescuers recovered his wife’s body the following day.
Preliminary assessments from the Mines and Geosciences Bureau suggest recent continuous rainfall—which significantly increased the rubbish’s weight—combined with engineering considerations potentially contributed to the landslide at the 15-hectare (37-acre) facility. Landfills remain essential infrastructure throughout major Philippine urban centers including Cebu, the central Visayas region’s primary commercial and transportation hub.