A dozen workers have been successfully rescued, albeit with injuries, following a massive garbage pile collapse at a waste management site in the village of Binaliw, Cebu City. Local authorities confirmed the incident.

Rescue teams, comprising police officers, firefighters, and disaster-response units, have been working tirelessly under precarious conditions to locate additional survivors. The search efforts are focused on navigating through a dangerous mix of tangled metal roofing, iron bars, and combustible waste material.

“We have identified signs of life in certain areas, necessitating careful excavation. A heavy-duty 50-ton crane is on its way, escorted by police,” Cebu City Mayor Nestor Archival stated in a press release.

The mayor emphasized that the safety of the rescue teams is a top priority, given the hazards posed by unstable debris and the potential presence of acetylene. Consequently, security measures have been adjusted, tightening the perimeter and controlling access to the site, Archival added.

Tragically, four individuals, including an engineer and a female office employee, have been confirmed dead. All victims were employed at the landfill and waste management facility, which houses a workforce of 110, according to both the mayor and local police reports.

The initial list of victims on Friday included two dead and 36 missing, which increased on Saturday to four dead, according to Archival, who did not provide an updated number of people missing.

The cause of the collapse of the mountain of garbage remains unclear, but a survivor told The Associated Press on Friday that it happened in an instant without any warning despite fairly good weather at the time.

Jaylord Antigua, a 31-year-old office worker at the landfill, said the wall of garbage cascaded down and destroyed the administrative office he was in. He extricated himself with bruises on his face and arms by crawling in darkness in the rubble and debris.

“I saw a light and crawled toward it in a hurry, because I feared there will be more landslides,” Antigua said.

“It was traumatic. I feared that it was my end, so this is my second life.”

It is unclear how the accident would affect garbage disposal in the landfill in Cebu, a bustling port city of nearly a million people that serves as a regional hub for trade, commerce and tourism.

Preparations “are also underway to manage the looming garbage collection issue,” Archival said in his statement without further details.

Such landfills and open dumpsites have long been a source of safety and health concerns throughout the Philippines, especially in areas close to poor communities where many residents scavenge for junk and leftover food in the garbage heaps.

In July 2000, a huge garbage mound in a shantytown in suburban Quezon City, part of metropolitan Manila, collapsed and ignited a fire after days of stormy weather.

The disaster left more than 200 people dead and many more missing, damaged scores of shanties and prompted a law requiring the closure of illegal dump sites nationwide, as well as improved and more sustainable waste management by authorities.