Malaysian among casualties of a building collapse in Philippines that left four dead
Four individuals have been confirmed dead following the collapse of a nine-storey building under construction in Angeles City, Pampanga, Philippines, on Sunday (24 May).
The casualties include a 65-year-old Malaysian national who was staying at an apartment hotel beside the collapsed structure.
According to the Inquirer, 47 individuals were trapped inside the building when it collapsed at 3am.
26 have been rescued from the rubble, while at least 12 remain missing as of late Monday.
Source: Angeles City Information Office on Facebook
Two Malaysians affected by collapse
The Malaysian victim was identified as Mohd Rezal bin Abdullah from Sabah, a person with disability.
According to the Daily Tribune, authorities said he had still managed to communicate with rescuers over the phone on Sunday morning.
However, Mr Rezal, who was pinned under the hotel wall in his second-floor room, was lifeless when he was pulled out of the rubble on the same day.
Source: Angeles City Information Office on Facebook
One other Malaysian was affected by the collapse, but they have been confirmed safe, according to the Embassy of Malaysia in Manila.
Safety lapses previously found at construction site
The collapse of the nine-storey structure, which was being built as a hotel or aparthotel, had affected establishments in its immediate vicinity, with some passersby sustaining minor abrasions.
Source: Angeles City Information Office on Facebook
A severe thunderstorm had hit Angeles City the previous afternoon, but officials said it was too early to confirm whether the incident was due to the weather.
According to Sunstar Pampanga, Geraldine Panlilio, the Regional Director of the Department of Labor and Employment Central Luzon (DOLE-III), said the contractor was issued a Notice of Work Stoppage in Sept 2025.
This was after inspectors discovered multiple occupational safety violations, including the lack of personal protective equipment and safety personnel at the site.
“Upon validation, we returned to the site and saw that they had complied, so I lifted the work stoppage order in October,” she told Sunstar Pampanga.
No signs of life detected
At 8.27pm on Monday (25 May), the Unified Command System officially terminated the search and rescue operations, the Angeles City Information Office announced.
This was after a final assessment using a life locator consistently showed that there were no longer signs of life in the area.
On Tuesday (26 May), responders will transition to retrieval and clearing operations.
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Featured image adapted from Angeles City Information Office on Facebook.
