Repair of paging system in two bridges pushed

CEBU, Philippines - The Mactan-Cebu Bridge Management Board  will be restoring the paging system at the Mandaue-Mactan Bridge and Marcelo Fernan Bridge as part of its efforts to deter suicide attempts on those bridges.

The paging systems of the two bridges are currently offline.

The Traffic and Security Monitoring System, which monitors the closed-circuit Television cameras at the bridges, reported to the board yesterday a number of suicide attempts and incidents from November and December this year on both bridges, with some happening in a span of a week.

Just last Monday, a certain Donald Gabato, 28, resident of Barangay Basak in Lapu-Lapu City, was found floating in the waters off Sitio Camansili in Barangay Pajo after he allegedly leaped off the Mandaue-Mactan Bridge. The incident was caught by CCTV footage at 8:51 a.m.

Gabato was brought to the Lapu-Lapu District Hospital but was declared dead on arrival.

Another two separate suicide incidents happened on November 22 on the two bridges. The CCTV that captured one of the incidents shows a woman falling off from the Marcelo Fernan Bridge and landing on the ground leading to her instantaneous death. The other woman was rescued after she allegedly jumped off the Mandaue-Mactan Bridge and landed in the water.

In his presentation during the bridge board meeting yesterday, TSMS coordinator Leo Bacus said the office is now working on the proposal for the repair of the paging system, in coordination with the Police Regional Maritime Unit-7.

Chief Inspector Alvin Gumacal, assistant chief of the Regional Maritime Unit-7, said the paging system would enable them to call the attention of a person who is planning to jump off the bridge.

“Usually di naman talaga tatalon sila ng biglaan, magwa-wait pa yan sila ng certain minutes, mag-isip-isip kung tatalon o hindi. Kung may paging system tayo, puede natin ma-distract ang attention nila,” he told reporters.

Cebu Governor Hilario Davide III, the chairman of the bridge board, said he sees urgency for the repair of the paging system considering the number of recorded suicide incidents.

He said that once the TSMS submits the needed amount for the repair, the board will automatically shell out funds for it.

“Di na kinahanglan og board meeting,” he said.

The bridge board will also allocate for the repair of those malfunctioned CCTV cameras for the bridges since only 27 out of 40 units are functioning.

Eight CCTV cameras need repair and five are not receiving electrical power as the main line has been damaged and needs to be rewired.  (FREEMAN)