3 missing in Rizal landfill collapse

CAMP VICENTE LIM, Laguna, Philippines — Three people were reported missing after a garbage pile at the sanitary landfill in Barangay San Isidro in Rodriguez, Rizal collapsed on Friday, police said.

Lt. Col. Wilhelmina Saldivar, Rizal provincial police deputy chief for operations, said the incident was reported to authorities only yesterday by Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office head Jun Orogo.

Saldivar said Orogo informed police that the incident occurred at the tipping area of the Rodriguez municipal landfill in Sitio Pintor at 4 p.m. on Friday.

Yesterday, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources ordered an investigation on the incident.

“Personnel were deployed to the site to assess the extent of erosion and verify reports of missing individuals,” the agency said.

“The (landfill) operator was directed to implement stabilization activities, such as leveling and sloping of the eroded area,“ it added.

The facility’s private operator has not released a statement yet.