About 50 sanitation workers were buried when a large pile of garbage collapsed at a privately run Binaliwe landfill in Cebu City on Thursday.
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Rescue workers said Friday that at least two people were killed and dozens more were buried under the rubble after a landfill collapsed in the central Philippines.
About 50 sanitation workers were buried when a huge pile of garbage collapsed at a privately run Binaliwe landfill in Cebu City on Thursday. “There are signs that people are still alive at the scene,” Cebu Mayor Nestor Archival told reporters in a briefing on Friday. “Hundreds of rescuers are already at the scene searching for people buried under the rubble, while 500 more personnel have been deployed to help.”
He said search and rescue efforts would continue until Sunday. Rita Koge, who operates a compactor at the scene, said she managed to escape because she went out to get water moments before the building she was staying in collapsed, but many people were trapped.
Koge, 49, said, “I went out to get water. Suddenly, I heard a loud crash. I thought a helicopter had crashed, but when I returned, there was garbage and the building was collapsing. I ran to safety.'
Koge said, 'Some colleagues who were 'calling for help' from the rubble were rescued and sent to the hospital.'
The death toll rose to two after the body of a 25-year-old engineer was found, the mayor said on his Facebook page, adding that two people had died and 36 others were still missing.
At least 12 workers were pulled alive from the rubble and hospitalized. Jason Morata, the city's assistant public information officer, said the mountain of garbage was estimated to be four stories high.
Aerial photos released by police showed several structures crushed by the weight of the garbage.
In July 2000, more than 200 people died when a landslide of garbage collapsed on a shantytown in Manila, home to thousands of garbage collectors. The tragedy was the worst in Philippine history. A law was passed months later to better regulate garbage management.
