The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) announced Friday that it will provide assistance under the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS) program to families and individuals affected by the deadly landfill collapse in Barangay Binaliw, Cebu City.
“The DSWD is working closely with the local government unit (LGU), ensuring that the affected families are provided with the needed intervention, especially as retrieval operations are still on-going,” Assistant Secretary Irene Dumlao of the DSWD’s Disaster Response Management Group (DRMG) said in a statement.
“Kasalukuyan na din pong pinoproseso ng Departamento ang pagbibigay ng Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) sa mga apektado ng krisis na ito,” she added.
The collapse occurred on January 8 when a large section of the landfill operated by Prime Integrated Waste Solutions Inc. gave way, burying sanitation workers under tons of garbage, soil, steel trusses, and nearby office structures.
In the days following the incident, DSWD Field Office 7 Regional Director Shalaine Marie Lucero and Disaster Response Management Division (DRMD) chief Lilibeth Cabiara visited the site to assess conditions, oversee operations, and ensure immediate aid delivery.
Read-to-Eat Food (RTEF) boxes were distributed to victims and families of those buried in the landslide, while temporary tents were set up near the landfill to accommodate relatives awaiting updates on missing loved ones.
As of the latest report, 18 individuals remain hospitalized, 11 are still missing, and 25 fatalities have been confirmed.
Search, rescue, and retrieval operations continue with support from multiple agencies, including the Cebu Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO), which has reinforced ground operations and incident management coordination.