The death toll from the collapse of an under-construction building in Angeles City, north of Manila, rose to 21 after rescuers pulled seven more bodies from the rubble, Philippine officials said, as crews pressed on with a search for workers still missing. The structure gave way earlier in the week, trapping labourers who had been working on the site.
Emergency teams used heavy machinery and search dogs to comb the wreckage, working cautiously amid concrete slabs and twisted reinforcing bars that made the operation slow and dangerous. Officials said they could not yet give a definitive figure for the number of people who had been on the site when it fell, leaving open the possibility that the toll would climb further.
Most of the victims were construction workers, and the collapse renewed scrutiny of building practices and safety enforcement on Philippine sites, where rapid development has at times outpaced oversight. Investigators were expected to examine the structure's design, the quality of materials and whether proper procedures had been followed during construction.
Angeles City, a commercial hub in Pampanga province, has seen extensive building activity in recent years, part of a broader construction boom across the country. Accidents on such sites, while not common on this scale, have periodically exposed gaps in inspection regimes and in protections for the workers who carry out the labour.
Local authorities said families of those killed and injured would receive assistance, and that a formal inquiry into the cause of the collapse would follow once the rescue phase concluded. For now, the priority remained reaching anyone who might still be alive beneath the debris.
The disaster added to a difficult stretch for the region, which has also contended with severe weather, and underscored the human cost when a structure fails. Relatives kept vigil near the site, waiting for word as the search stretched on.