Bus kills couple in Santander

CEBU, Philippines – A habal-habal (motorcycle-for-hire) driver and his live-in partners died after their service motorcycle collided with a Ceres bus in barangay Pasil, Santander town at around 8:30 p.m. last Sunday.

Police investigators identified the victims as Gudofredo Omaya, 46, driver of the motorcycle bearing plate numbers 7C-D-D1850 and resident of barangay Cabutungan, Santander and Lydia Rondira, 39, also resident of the said place.

SPO1 Manuel Regulacion, desk officer of Santander police station, said that based on investigation conducted by PO1 Edward Sagon of the traffic division, the two vehicles were running towards opposite direction—the Ceres bus bearing body number 838 was going south to Bato, Santander while the motorcycle was going north.

The bus, driven by Leopoldo Papna, 42, of San Jose Quezon Bukidnon, came from Cebu City and was negotiating in an intersection when the motorcycle suddenly swerved to its left resulting in a head-on collision.

Because of the impact, Omaya suffered a broken skull that caused his instantaneous death while Rondira, who sustained severe head injuries that made her lost almost all her teeth, was rushed to the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center. However, police later learned that she passed away at 12 p.m., yesterday.

According to Regulacion, Omaya was drunk at the time of the accident and was driving his motorcycle at a high speed.

Relatives of the victims said they would not file charges against Papna if he agrees to shoulder all the hospital and burial expenses. — Christopher Gabriel C. Bonjoc/WAB (THE FREEMAN)