01/12/2026

Workers buried under mountain of garbge

The death toll from a landfill collapse in the central Philippines has risen to four, an official said, as rescue efforts continued for dozens who remained missing. The accident occurred last week when mounds of garbage gave way at a landfill in Cebu City. Jerahmey Espinoza, whose husband was among the missing workers, went to the landfill in hopes of finding him. “They haven’t seen him or have located him ever since the disaster happened,” she said. “We’re still hopeful that he’s still alive. It hurts. It hurts, but it’s okay since God is still there.”

■Class discussion: The world sends 2.12 billion tons of waste to landfills every year, and more than half of it is food. How much waste does your family throw away every day? How much food at your school ends up in waste bins? What things do you throw in the trash? Could any of the items – such as dead batteries and electronics – end up poisoning the ground or water supplies? About one-third of all the food produced for human consumption is thrown away. What can you, your family, and your school do to avoid wasting food in a world with so many hungry people?