At least 14 tombs collapsed at a cemetery in Barangay Poblacion Oeste, Dagupan City after days of heavy rains, leaving some remains exposed.

The skeletal remains from the damaged tombs were retrieved carefully, placed in plastic bags, and reported to the barangay.

Four of them were claimed by their families, while others remain stored beside the site awaiting retrieval.

Two caskets were left untouched due to safety concerns as nearby tomb structures remain unstable.

“Makikita nila kaagad yung mga bangkay. Kung gusto nilang kunin, pwede naman nilang kunin. Kung dito pa rin, dito pa rin natin ilalagay,” Jumar Caguioa, a cemetery worker, said.

Items buried with the dead, like clothes and medicine, were also found scattered at the site.

Behind the cemetery, some houses in neighboring Barangay Tapuac were also affected. A part of one house was damaged due to the collapse.

The local government is coordinating with barangay officials to prevent further damage in future storms.

“Yun nga, inayos nga nila pero kung makikita natin ito talaga is kailangan na nating aksyunan na sana. Yun nga i-demolish na para maayos na ito,” Barangay Chairman Mark Anthony Gutierrez said.

The cemetery has been in use since the 1980s, but the apartment-type tombs were built in 2015. It currently holds over 200 remains.