Landfill Collapse Near Cebu City Kills at Least 4, 34 Missing

A garbage mound at a private landfill in Binaliw on the outskirts of Cebu City collapsed on Thursday, killing at least four people and leaving 34 people missing, local officials said. Rescue workers were searching for those reported missing, many believed trapped under the debris, Police Capt.

Wilmer Castillo of the Cebu City Police Office said. Authorities detected signs of life in some areas and were awaiting a large crane to lift debris; Mayor Nestor Archival wrote that 12 people had been rescued and brought to hospitals and that at least a dozen others were injured.

Relatives and families gathered near the site, and one woman told ABS-CBN that those trapped had been calling for help. The collapse occurred after 4 p.m. on Thursday at the privately operated landfill, where the incident involved 110 employees, Mr. Archival said. Prime Waste Solutions Cebu, which operates the site and processes some 1,000 tons of municipal solid waste a day according to its website, said it was working with government agencies and had suspended operations.

Local officials said they were investigating the cause; Mr. Archival said an initial probe suggested a possible link to a 6.9-magnitude earthquake in September and that heavy rain had seeped into the ground and weakened the landfill's foundation.

Key Topics

World, Binaliw Landfill, Cebu City, Prime Waste Solutions, Nestor Archival, September Earthquake