Philippines ends rescue operation for 12 missing in building collapse

ANGELES CITY, Philippines - Emergency officials said late on May 25 that they had ended a two-day rescue operation for at least 12 people believed to be buried in the debris of a collapsed building in northern Philippines.

The bodies of four people, including a Malaysian man and two trapped construction workers, have so far been pulled from the debris of the nine-storey condominium project that collapsed onto a nearby hotel in Angeles city, north of Manila, early on May 24.

There had been hope earlier on May 25 when thermal sensors detected what rescue officials described as “signs of life” in one area of the wreckage. However, no survivors nor further bodies were subsequently found, regional fire bureau spokeswoman Maria Leah Sajili said.

The rescue operation was formally declared over on the night of May 25, and the search was suspended overnight before “retrieval operations” begin on May 26, she told reporters.

The Malaysian man, who was a guest at the hotel, and the two construction workers were found trapped but alive on May 24.

However, all three died before they could be pulled from the rubble.

The fourth confirmed death has not yet been identified.

Seventeen people had originally been listed as missing but rescue officials said one of them contacted officials on May 25 to confirm that he had not been in the area at the time, Ms Sajili said.

She said most of the remaining 16 were construction workers who were sleeping at the site at the time.

Officials said up to 70 people were employed at the construction site, although most had gone home for the weekend.

Mr Alfredo Albis, 55, told AFP that he believes two of his cousins, who worked with him at the building site, were among the missing.

“They were working here to earn for their families,” said Mr Albis, who was asleep at a nearby barracks for workers when the structure collapsed.

Lack of safety gear

The cause of the collapse is not yet known, but regulators had been monitoring the project.

Labour department inspectors shut the site down briefly in September 2024 over occupational safety standards violations, said regional labour department official Geraldine Panlilio on May 25.

“Our labour inspectors had monitored poor working conditions, a violation that would put our workers at risk,” Ms Panlilio said in an interview on Manila radio station DZMM.

Its workers “lacked safety gear” such as hard hats, boots, safety belts and lifelines, and worked under poor lighting and with no visible safety signage, she said.

Construction resumed a month after the shutdown when the contractor complied with safety requirements, Ms Panlilio said. AFP