Jauhn Etienne Villaruel

Personnel from DPWH, BFP, Navotas LGU, and the Philippine Coast Guard navigate the Navotas Sanitary Landfill amid thick haze and dust during a site inspection on Thursday morning, April 16, 2026. Eon Sanchez, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

NAVOTAS SANITARY LANDFILL- FIRE

Ariel Rojas

Job Manahan

ABS-CBN News

<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/177665672034520260416-navotas-landfill-fire-inspection-ES7.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Personnel from DPWH, BFP, Navotas LGU, and the Philippine Coast Guard navigate the Navotas Sanitary Landfill amid thick haze and dust during a site inspection on Thursday morning, April 16, 2026. <em>Eon Sanchez, ABS-CBN News/File</em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA — The air quality in Metro Manila remains poor on Monday morning, as the still uncontained Navotas landfill fire continues to burn.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/4/17/unhealthy-air-quality-recorded-anew-in-metro-manila-1227">Unhealthy air quality recorded anew in Metro Manila</a></div><p>PM2.5 concentration monitoring from the Environmental Management Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources showed acutely unhealthy air in Valenzuela City at 6 a.m.</p><p>PM2.5 are particulate matters measuring 2.5 micrometers or smaller, which are about 1/20th of the width of the human hair.</p><p>These fine particles, which include smoke and combustion products, can penetrate deeply in the lungs and enter the bloodstream, causing chronic illnesses.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/4/13/navotas-landfill-fire-enters-third-day-2029">Navotas landfill fire enters third day as smoke worsens Metro Manila air quality</a></div><p>Very unhealthy air quality was observed in Marikina City and along Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City while unhealthy conditions were monitored in Caloocan City, Malabon City, and inside the Ateneo de Manila University campus in Quezon City.</p><p>Over the weekend, unhealthy air conditions persisted in the same areas, as well as some localities in Central Luzon. Haze blanketed skylines in northern Metro Manila.</p><p>Apart from poor air quality, foul smell from burning organic, plastic, and other materials are also observed in nearby communities.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>UP TO TWO DAYS TO CLEAR</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>In Obando, Bulacan, more residents were evacuated over the weekend, bringing the total to 131 families or about 400 individuals, according to Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office head Reygie Cabucos.</p><p>While efforts by the Department of Public Works and Highways, Navotas local government unit, and Bureau of Fire Protection are underway to contain the landfill blaze with soil and mud, Navotas City Mayor John Rey Tiangco said he cannot provide an exact timeline.</p><p>“Mahirap mangako dahil forty plus hectares ‘yan – medyo malawak lang po based dun sa thermal scan na ginawa natin. Medyo malawak na po ‘yung affected area dun sa ilalim ng surface so mahirap mag-predict pero ginagawa po natin ang lahat. Nakatutok po tayo dyan at lahat ng resources ng iba’t ibang ahensya at private companies ay nagtutulungan para masugpo itong apoy at usok po,” Tiangco said in an interview with DZMM on Saturday.</p><p>(It’s hard to commit to a timeline given the fire’s 40-hectare extent, based on our thermal scan.  While it remains hard to predict, we are doing our best. We are focusing our efforts, with resources from government agencies and private companies pooled together to contain the fire and this smoke.)</p><p>Atmospheric scientist and UP professor Gerry Bagtasa said that even after the landfill fire is fully extinguished, it may take up to two days for the air pollution to clear.</p><p>“Halimbawa kung mapatay talaga totally ‘yung sunog, siguro it will take one or at most two days para ma-clear hindi lang dito sa NCR, pati sa Manila Bay and sa Bataan,” Bagtasa explained on Ligtas Dapat on DZMM.</p><p>(Even after the fire is put out, it will take one or at most two days to clear the pollution not only here in NCR but also in Manila Bay and Bataan.)</p><p>He added that although hot weather usually allows the suspended particles to be dispersed, the sheer volume of emission from the landfill continues to choke Metro Manila.</p><p>“Actually yung init kakampi natin yan in terms of pollution. Kapag mainit na mainit yung panahon, mainit na mainit yung kalupaan, ang ginagawa ng init ng lupa inaakyat nya itong mga pollutants na ito… Despite sa init na tinatangay nya supposedly paakyat [yung pollution], hindi pa rin enough sa sobrang dami talaga ng emissions na nilalabas ng sunog na ito.”</p><p>(Hot weather can help disperse pollution. When temperatures are high, the land heats up and warms the air above it, which helps mix and spread pollutants. However, in this case, the emissions from the landfill fire are simply too large to be effectively dispersed.)</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>‘SOIL COVER’</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) on Monday said it began a “soil cover operation” to extinguish the landfill fire. </p><p>“Puspusan na ang pagtakip – soil cover operation naman. Ito ay talagang pang-permanenteng solusyon na para hindi mag-emit ng kahit anong usok,” BFP Spokesperson FSupt. Anthony Arroyo said in a briefing on state-run PTV. </p><p>“Maliban sa mag-absorb ng init, ito ay magsisilbing blanket or smothering method. Tatanggalin niya ng oxygen o ide-deprive ang oxygen ang mga hotspot sa ilalim, mga baga sa ilalim. &#x27;Yan ang mga kaparaanan natin para ito ay patuloy na maapula,” he added. </p><p>But the official noted some challenges hindering the operation. </p><p>“Noong una, hindi yan accessible dahil magkahiwalay yung isla at sa pamamagitan lamang ng barge o RoRo bago makarating diyan ang kagamitan tulad ng fire trucks. Isinasakay &#x27;yan sa RoRo para makarating doon,” he said. </p><p>“Kahapon lang nakagawa ng paraan para magka-access ang fire trucks natin anytime kasi malayo ito sa Manila Bay o Navotas cityland, mainland – more or less nasa 2.6 kilometer. Nakasalalay pa dun kung high tide or low tide,” he added. </p><p>The BFP official said they had created a “compact road” to the island, forming 8 stations, which would make it easier for them to extinguish the fire. </p><p>“Ang ginagawa ng BFP ngayon ay mini-misting o total flooding control. Binabasa natin ang buong lawak ng bundok ng basura at kahit usok lang sa taas, kung makikita yan sa thermal scanner natin, may hotspot pa rin. May init pa rin yung layer ng  mga nasabing basura sa ilalim,” he said. </p><p>They have also sought the help of partner private companies for the use of heavy equipment. </p><div><br/></div><div><strong>WEAR MASKS</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>The Department of Health continues to remind the public to wear N95 masks, which can block PM2.5.</p><p>Secretary Teddy Herbosa led the distribution of masks in Obando, Bulacan last week, with a toxicologic survey also underway to determine the level of heavy metal hazard from the smoke from the landfill burn</p><p>“Isa pa palang binabantayan namin [bukod] sa PM2.5 yung mga heavy metals. Kasi hindi natin alam kung ito ay maaaring na-a-aerosolize… I think Valenzuela Medical Center ang magpapadala ng tao dun sa Obando. Kukuha ng samples ng dugo nung mga [residente] doon para masigurado na hindi sila naapektuhan dun sa mga sinasabing heavy metals and other substances,” DOH spokesperson Usec. Albert Domingo explained.</p><p>(Apart from PM2.5, we are also monitoring the heavy metals, which may have been aerosolized during the fire. I think Valenzuela Medical Center will send personnel to collect blood samples from residents to ensure they have not inhaled fumes with heavy metals and other substances.)</p><div><strong>RELATED VIDEOS: </strong><strong><br/><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/4tEtQU7bJYo?&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/HL0JtipuspY?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></strong><br/></div>

<p>The air quality in Metro Manila remains poor on Monday morning, as the still uncontained Navotas landfill fire continues to burn.</p>

The air quality in Metro Manila remains poor on Monday morning, as the still uncontained Navotas landfill fire continues to burn.

Unhealthy air from Navotas landfill fire lingers over Metro Manila

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Unhealthy air from Navotas landfill fire lingers over Metro Manila

Ariel Rojas,

Job Manahan,

ABS-CBN News

Published April 20, 2026 11:52 AM PHT

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Updated April 20, 2026 03:39 PM PHT

Read More:

Navotas landfill

air quality

PM2.5

Metro Manila

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