Philippines Landfill Collapse: Death Toll Hits 4 as Search Intensifies for Missing Workers

The death toll from a landfill collapse in the Philippines has risen to four, with rescue teams continuing a painstaking search for dozens of workers believed to be trapped beneath debris in Cebu City.

The incident occurred at about 4:17 p.m. on Thursday at a privately operated landfill facility in the Binaliw area of Cebu City, located in the Central Visayas region. Emergency responders have since been working around the clock to locate survivors.

Cebu City Mayor Nestor Archival said on Saturday that 12 people have been taken to hospitals, while more than 30 others remain unaccounted for. He added that rescue efforts are being carried out with extreme caution after authorities detected signs of life in specific areas of the collapsed site.

“Confirmed indications of life have been found, which requires continued careful excavation,” the mayor said in a Facebook post, noting that a 50-ton crane has been deployed to support the operation.

Earlier, Mayor Archival disclosed that about 110 workers were at the Binaliw Landfill when the collapse occurred.

In a separate development, authorities also reported multiple fatalities during the annual Feast of the Black Nazarene procession in Manila. The Quiapo Church administration confirmed that four people died during the religious event, according to local media.

Church officials clarified that a photojournalist who died on Friday while covering the procession was not classified as a casualty of the religious activity. Health authorities recorded more than 1,050 medical cases during the event, largely linked to exhaustion and crowd-related incidents.

Rescue operations at the Cebu landfill site remain ongoing as officials race against time to reach those still trapped.