ANGELES CITY, Pampanga — The death toll from the collapse of a nine-story building under construction here climbed to four on Monday, with authorities fearing the number would rise as more people remain trapped beneath the rubble.

As of 10:30 a.m., Fire Superintendent Maria Leah Sejili, spokesperson of the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) Region 3, said the latest fatality was among the 18 construction workers listed as missing. The victim was one of two found dead in Sector 2, where rescuers had detected no vital signs. 

In an earlier press briefing, Sejili described the confirmed fatalities.

“The first fatality was a Malaysian national whose body was recovered yesterday. The second was identified as Mr. Mark, who was extricated alive at 2:52 a.m. today but later died due to severe trauma and stress. Our team attempted to revive him and rushed him to San Rafael Lazatin Memorial Hospital, but he did not survive,” she said.

Sejili confirmed the third fatality was retrieved at around 9 a.m. after the victim suffered cardiac arrest while trapped under the rubble and was lifeless when recovered.

She said the list of missing workers was based strictly on records and payroll documents submitted by the site engineer, listing those who were on duty when the building collapsed.

“Teams from the Philippine National Police, the Department of Social Welfare and Development, and local officials are cross-checking and validating these documents to ensure that the identities and numbers are accurate,” Sejili said.

Official records showed 47 individuals were present at the site at the time of the incident. Of the total, 26 have been sent home to their provinces with government assistance, including financial aid, food packs, and transportation support, while 21 individuals remain under monitoring or are unaccounted for.

“Our teams are doing their best. We remain hopeful there are still survivors beneath the rubble. We will continue working until everyone is brought out,” Sejili said.

The BFP official said rescue operations were being conducted in four designated sectors, with teams concentrating on Sectors 1 and 2, where no vital signs have been detected.

Once retrieval operations are completed, authorities will conduct thermal scanning and deploy K-9 units across all sectors to determine if anyone remains trapped.

Sejili added that clearing operations and the use of heavy equipment will only begin once rescuers confirm that no survivors remain beneath the debris.

Meanwhile, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said full-scale search, rescue, and retrieval operations continue in Barangay Balibago following the collapse of the building along Teodoro Street before dawn.

In a report issued on Monday, the DILG, through the BFP and in coordination with local authorities and partner agencies, said that as of noon on Monday, authorities had recorded 26 survivors, four confirmed deaths, and 17 individuals missing.

The collapse triggered a massive emergency response involving 267 personnel, including the BFP Special Rescue Force, Emergency Medical Service teams, and augmentation units from Pampanga, Aurora, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, Zambales and Bataan, along with personnel from the BFP Regional Office III.

“The operations will continue as long as there are people to rescue and lives to save,” the DILG said.