Jamaine Punzalan

Rescuers walk past the rubble of a collapsed building in Angeles City, Pampanga province, north of Manila on May 25, 2026. Rescuers said late on May 25 they had ended a two-day search for more than a dozen people believed buried in debris of a collapsed building in the northern Philippines. Ted Aljibe, AFP

Article (news)

Christopher Sitson

ABS-CBN News

Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1779759419016AFP__20260525__B3YL2NU__v1__MidRes__PhilippinesAccident.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Rescuers walk past the rubble of a collapsed building in Angeles City, Pampanga province, north of Manila on May 25, 2026. Rescuers said late on May 25 they had ended a two-day search for more than a dozen people believed buried in debris of a collapsed building in the northern Philippines. Ted Aljibe, AFP </span></span></span>MANILA — Eighteen people are believed buried in the debris of a collapsed building in Angeles City, Pampanga, the local government said Tuesday as it ended rescue efforts and shifted to retrieval operations. </div><p>Regional fire bureau spokeswoman Maria Leah Sajili said that emergency responders on Monday used all available means, from life locators to K-9 rescue dogs, to find signs of life but failed. At 8:27 p.m., officials announced the 2-day rescue operations had ended. </p><p>“Hindi po kami sumuko, actually ‘yung last signs of life na binabanggit po namin lahat po kami nun nagpe-pray na sana positive. Bilang responder po hindi rin po masarap sa pakiramdam na hindi namin nagawa ‘yung part namin,” Sajili said. </p><p>“But it’s very fulfilling as a responder na makapag-save kami ng life. Lahat po ng pagod namin mapapalitan, nung buhay na mase-save namin, 100% po we did our best to save their lives,” she said.</p><p>On Tuesday, authorities will focus on clearing Teodoro Street by manually cutting the scaffoldings around the affected building.</p><p>BFP Central Luzon cannot provide an exact timeline for the operation, as it will involve another delicate task.</p><p>“Ang nabanggit nga po sa ating briefing ng ating mga expert, kapag nagputol nang nagputol nang mano-mano, mayroong naging pagguho, paggalaw, o naging unsafe sa ating mga rescuer magpa-pause po muna tayo,” Sajili said.</p><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=314&amp;href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Freel%2F965354259465370%2F&amp;show_text=false&amp;width=560&amp;t=0" width="560" height="314" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div><p>The <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/5/25/2-confirmed-dead-18-still-missing-in-pampanga-building-collapse-0735">bodies of four people</a>, 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 on Sunday.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/regions/2026/5/25/angeles-lgu-to-shift-to-retrieval-ops-after-no-signs-of-life-detected-in-collapsed-building-2257">&#x27;No signs of life detected&#x27; in collapsed building</a></div><p>The Malaysian man, who was a guest in the hotel, and the two construction workers were all found trapped but alive on Sunday.</p><p>However, all three died before they could be pulled from the rubble.</p><p>The fourth confirmed fatality has not yet been identified.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/regions/2026/5/26/-buhay-ang-kuya-ko-kin-refuse-to-lose-hope-after-angeles-city-building-collapse-rescue-ops-end-0744">&#x27;Buhay ang kuya ko&#x27;: Kin refuse to lose hope after Angeles City building collapse rescue ops end </a></div><p>Sajili said that most of the remaining missing were construction workers who were sleeping at the site at the time.</p><p>“We&#x27;re very doubtful na lahat ay ma-identify physically after this retrieval operation kasi medyo nag-dedeteriorate na sila as of this moment kasi may amoy na siya,” Sajili said.</p><p>Around 100 personnel from various government agencies and rescue teams were working to retrieve the remains.</p><p>Officials said up to 70 people were employed at the construction site, although most had gone home for the weekend.</p><p>Alfredo Albis, 55, told AFP he believed two of his cousins who worked with him at the building site were among the missing.</p><p>&quot;They were working here to earn for their families,&quot; said Albis, who was asleep at a nearby barracks for workers when the structure collapsed.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>LACK OF SAFETY GEAR</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ydR0_3sYUZ8?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div><p>The cause of the collapse is not yet known, but regulators had been monitoring the project.</p><p>Labor department inspectors shut the site down briefly in September 2024 over <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/regions/2026/5/25/collapsed-pampanga-building-issued-work-stoppage-order-last-year-over-safety-violations-dole-1159">occupational safety standards violations</a>, regional labor department official Geraldine Panlilio said on Monday.</p><p>&quot;Our labor inspectors had monitored poor working conditions, a violation that would put our workers at risk,&quot; Panlilio said in an interview on Manila radio station DZMM.</p><p>Its workers &quot;lacked safety gear&quot; such as hard hats, boots, safety belts and lifelines, and worked under poor lighting and with no visible safety signage, she said.</p><p>Construction resumed a month after the shutdown when the contractor complied with safety requirements, Panlilio said.</p><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/V79nEbRUoBg?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2zio6HABriE?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>Eighteen people are believed buried in the debris of a collapsed building in Angeles City, Pampanga, the local government said Tuesday as it ended rescue operations and shifted to retrieval.</p>

Eighteen people are believed buried in the debris of a collapsed building in Angeles City, Pampanga, the local government said Tuesday as it ended rescue operations and shifted to retrieval.

‘We did our best’: 18 still missing in Pampanga building collapse as retrieval ops start

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‘We did our best’: 18 still missing in Pampanga building collapse as retrieval ops start

Christopher Sitson,

ABS-CBN News,

Agence France-Presse

Published May 26, 2026 09:42 AM PHT

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Updated May 26, 2026 12:29 PM PHT

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Pampanga

building collapse

rescue

retrieval

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