Kin of missing construction workers in Pampanga building collapse admit to losing hope

The kin of the missing construction workers believed to be trapped underneath the rubble of a collapsed building in Angeles City in Pampanga admitted that they are losing hope with each passing minute.

In Mark Salazar’s report in “24 Oras” on Monday, Lea Casilao is worried about her husband who was working at the collapsed construction site at Barangay Balibago.

“When I arrived, I could no longer contact him,” she said.

“They’ve been trapped there for 24 hours. They have yet to eat anything. For sure, they are not drinking any water. I’m not expecting that he’s still alive,” she added.

Myrna Arogante is optimistic that her son, Ferdie, is still be alive.

“My son is still alive. Because when I arrived here, I’m not nervous. I think he’s still alive,” she said.

“But if a day or two days have passed and he’s still not yet rescued, I will feel weak. I would go there myself just to rescue my son if possible,” she added.

Juan Concepcion’s cousin is also among the skilled workers trapped at the site.

Concepcion said he is still hoping until the very end that his cousin will be rescued alive, though he is slowly preparing himself for a different outcome.

“There are many hindrances when you are under there even if you are alive. First is hunger, but at least it can be managed. But dehydration and high blood pressure, because he’s already in his 50s, could lead to his death,” he said.

READ: WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR: Angeles City nine-story building collapse

Both Arogante and Concepcion are staying near the site of the incident to monitor the updates on the search and rescue operations.

Arogante felt as if the rescuers are not prioritizing the search due to the slow developments.

“These are just simple workers, so they don’t care about them. They are just expecting them to be dead,” she said.

She added that the rescuers explained to them why the search and rescue operations are taking so long.

“They told us that the scaffoldings are shaking. If they forced it, it might totally collapse and bury the rescuers,” she said.

Concepcion is determined to hold accountable everyone behind the tragedy.

“It seems like their building was substandard, which is why it collapsed. If it was not substandard, it wouldn’t have collapsed. It means it was poorly constructed. Whoever is responsible – the engineers, the top officials there, and the owner – should be held accountable,” she said.

Authorities are still looking for 17 more individuals. The death toll in the tragedy is currently at four fatalities.

Among the fatalities is a Malaysian citizen who was staying at a hotel adjacent to the construction site. — Vince Angelo Ferreras/JMA, GMA News