The painstaking search and retrieval activities in Barangay Balibago, Angeles City, more than a week after the catastrophic collapse of a nine-storey condo-hotel under construction, have come to a heartbreaking end.
The deafening boom that jolted Teodoro Street at 3:00 a.m. on May 24 will forever be etched into the community’s memory. Emergency responders have been working around the clock in the high heat and heavy rain, and officials have now accounted for all reported missing people. Here’s the latest on the ground as the city transitions from recovery to demanding answers and accountability.
Sad The Last Recoveries
The painful wait is ended for family camped near the ruins, but the ultimate numbers are dismal. Official death toll rises to 21 as of Tuesday evening, June 2.
The rescue teams faced the final day of the retrieval operations as a particularly hard and draining experience. The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) Central Luzon and the Unified Command rescued six people from the thick concrete and warped steel early Tuesday morning and into the afternoon.
Sadly, the last victim recovered from Quadrant 2 of the tragedy site at 6:01 p.m. was a unidentified infant. Earlier reports and survivor accounts said some construction workers had their families and children with them in improvised accommodations on the lower floors of the site. The baby’s recovery validates those terrifying fears. Right after, the Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) and the City Health Office launched Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) processes to aid the relatives of the victims in finding closure.
All in all, the authorities have reported that 27 individuals were successfully rescued and 21 died. Most of the casualties were construction workers, the newborn, and a Malaysian tourist (person with disability) whose adjacent budget apartelle was crushed by the falling rubble.
Unapproved Changes: Investigations Go Deeper
All victims have been accounted for and public indignation has rapidly turned to how this calamity was allowed to happen. Angeles City Mayor Carmelo “Jon” Lazatin II has launched a full-blown fact-finding probe, and first returns confirm what many expected – major safety and building code violations.
According to the local government, preliminary results show that structural changes were made without the required permits or approved changes by the Office of the Building Official (OBO). This is in line with earlier allegations that a swimming pool was being built on a proposed tenth floor, even though the building was only supposed to have nine floors.
Private investigators were also tapped to collaborate with the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to ensure a credible and impartial investigation. The DOLE had previously issued a work stopping order on the site due to the absence of basic safety gear and bad working conditions before the contractor was eventually allowed to resume building.
Responsibility and Financial Assistance
On Saturday, May 30, lawyers for the building’s owner and contractor attended a press conference and promised financial help to the victims and their families. The victims’ response, however, has been divided. Some families have accepted the first financial aid, others have refused it outright, ready for possible court fights alleging criminal negligence.
Meanwhile, the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) continues to render independent assistance to the traumatized survivors and grieving families through the distribution of food packs, medical help and psychosocial support.
The Road Forward
The Unified Command is fully engaged in cleanup of the site. Heavy machinery is still being used to remove debris, but carefully, with spotters strategically placed to protect the responders and preserve the location as evidence.
The Balibago disaster has been a sobering wake-up call on building safety, the living circumstances of laborers and local government oversight in the Philippines. The debris on Teodoro Street is being slowly cleaned, but the fight for justice for the 21 lives lost has only just begun. We will continue to watch the judicial process and official inquiries as they develop.
