Rains fail to put out Inayawan landfill fire

CEBU, Philippines - Smoke still continues to appear in parts of the Inayawan landfill despite the heavy rains Friday night.

According to Norman del Mar, a volunteer of the Cebu City Hall’s Department of Public Services, the rain had contributed minimally to extinguishing the fire although the smoke that was there for three weeks has been slowly dissipating. Only those parts in the riprap or in the boundary of the landfill appear to still have smoke.

They suspect the smoke is from fires underneath the riprap. They have been pumping water in this area and they are also planning to have a sewage pump to put out the fire.

He added that the smoke coming out of this area used to be dark, but after they continuously pumped water the smoke lightened and no longer smells as bad. 

Most part of the landfill is now clear and scavengers can now go there. For many in the area it is back to life as usual.

Inayawan barangay captain Rustico Ignacio said that the residents in this area are no longer bothered by the small fires as the smoke is no longer threatening to their health.

He added that most of the residents said there was no need for them to be evacuated to the gym.

The fire in the Inayawan landfill had been going on for around three weeks now. — Crischellyn D. Abayon and Queennie Kuebler (THE FREEMAN)