Bus driver in Skyway mishap dies

MANILA, Philippines - Carmelo Calatcat, the driver of the Don Mariano Transit bus that fell off the Skyway last Dec. 16, died at the intensive care unit of the Parañaque Doctors Hospital last Monday night.

Superintendent Elizabeth Velasquez, spokesperson for the Philippine National Police Highway Patrol Group (PNP-HPG), confirmed Calatcat’s death.

In a report over dzMM, Efren Risomadero said his 39-year-old cousin died at 6:43 p.m. on Monday.

The PNP-HPG had earlier filed a case of reckless imprudence resulting in multiple homicide, multiple physical injury and damage to property against Calatcat and the Don Mariano Transit management.

The bus crash killed 18 people and injured 16 others.

Police earlier said the Don Mariano bus, with license plate UVC-916 driven by Calatcat and plying the Novaliches-Pacita route, was cruising along the Skyway toward Alabang when it fell some 30 meters off the Skyway in Barangay Marcelo Green at around 5:30 a.m. last Dec. 16 and crashed onto a closed van with license plate ULX-874 that was traveling northward along the Liway West Service Road below.

With Calatcat’s death, Velasquez said both his criminal and civil liabilities in connection with the accident have been extinguished.

“In a way he escaped prosecution with his death. Only Don Mariano Transit faces civil liability. It would now be up to the prosecutor to determine who among the executives and owners of the bus company would be charged,” she added.

Based on the account of witnesses, police said the bus was speeding when it apparently lost control, swerved and hit the wall of the Skyway then crashed onto the van below.

Police added that the surface of the Skyway was wet at the time as it was raining and that the front wheels of the bus were worn out.

Quezon City Rep. Winston Castelo urged yesterday the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) to impose a five-year limit on the road lifespan of public utility buses (PUBs) and taxis to lessen accidents caused by old commuter vehicles.

Castelo, chairman of the House committee on Metro Manila development, said there is an urgent need for the DOTC to institute drastic policy reforms to ensure road safety in the country.

He said the department should review all PUB franchises, inspect the road worthiness of all buses, impose mandatory drug testing on all public utility vehicle drivers, and impose a five-year limit on road life span of all PUBs and taxis.

He said the DOTC should mobilize its two line agencies, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board and Land Transportation Office, to look into the proposed policy reforms and institute them.

Relatives of the 18 fatalities could still pursue a civil suit against the owners of the Don Mariano bus company even after the death of the bus driver, Senior Superintendent Wilben Mayor, spokesman for the office of the PNP chief, said. – With Paolo Romero, Cecille Suerte Felipe