Bus falls off the road in Catmon, 25 injured

CEBU, Philippines — A Ceres bus bound for Cebu City from northern Cebu skidded off the highway before falling on its side into a 10-foot ravine in Carmon town yesterday, wounding at least 25 passengers.

Driver Glecerio Landero, 36, told the police that the steering wheel of bus he was maneuvering “malfunctioned” while the bus was traversing the national highway in Barangay Panalipan, Catmon at around 7:55 a.m. yesterday.

Police subjected Landero to a liquor test to see if he was under the influence of alcohol while driving.

The injured passengers, including children ages 4 and 11, suffered minor injuries and were brought to the nearby district hospital. They were declared out of harm’s way.

One wounded passenger, a senior citizen, was rushed to Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City.

According to Police Corporal Orven Julius Montuerto, Catmon Police Station desk officer, the area where the bus fell is near a curvy road.

“Wala na kuno mabawi ang manibela. Ang manibela ni-largo-largo nalang, ni-malfunction kuno ang Ceres (The steering wheel malfunctioned. It did not turn),” Montuerto said, quoting the driver.

“Ang dalan medyo curve gyud na siya dira…pangpang gyud na siya unha daplin sa dagat (The road is curvy and is near a cliff by the shoreline),” he added, describing the spot as an accident-prone area.

Montuerto revealed that just this year, an armored van also fell off the same road.

He said the incident yesterday was the sixth accident to have happened in the area in a span of three years, with two accidents recorded every year.

Montuerto said that a year ago, a couple died in a vehicular accident in the same place.

In the accident yesterday, the metal railings on the roadside failed to prevent the Ceres bus from falling off the road.

During investigation, Landero said he has been driving for the last seven years.

He said that it was his second trip for the day and the bus left northern Cebu when it was still dawn.

It took about two hours for rescuers from the disaster office to extricate the passengers from the fallen bus.

Several ambulances travelling from Cebu City that passed by were asked to help, promptly sending injured passengers to the hospital.

As of noontime, the injured passengers were declared stable as they sustained minor injuries only.

Authorities are yet to check if the passengers will file a complaint against the driver who is now detained in Catmon Police Station. (FREEMAN)