14 hurt in road accident at Trans-central Highway

CEBU, Philippines - Fourteen people were injured, four of them were seriously hurt after the vehicle they were riding rammed into a signage along Trans-central Highway in Barangay Cansomoroy, Balamban last Saturday night.

V-hire driver Galileo Alibango was forced to ram the van he was driving against the road signage after losing control of it. Alibango and three of his passengers, Maria Hotohot, Cirilo Hotohot, and Carilla Santoya, were also seriously injured and are now being attended to at the hospital.

The other passengers who only suffered minor injuries were identified as Danilo Lacsina, 38; Janissa Madidenos, 26; Sherry Rose Alibango, 25; Jessa Mondaya, 22; Mark Lawrence Reduya, 4; Gil Dela Cerna; Christian Jake Torres; and baby girl Myra Reduya. There were two others whose names police failed to get.

Their injuries did not require confinement and were immediately released from the hospital.

PO1 Johndel Romero of Balamban Police said that Alibango was driving a white Hyundai van plying the Cebu City-Asturias route when it figured in the accident at around 7 pm.

The van was heading to Asturias town.

Romero said Aliba-ngo was apparently driving the vehicle fast because of the 50-meter skid mark they found on the road.

“Grabe gyud ma’am, guba gyud kaayo iyang sakyanan pero nakaloy-an tawon sa Ginoo kay walay casualty bisan og kusog-kusog to iyang dagan. (He was driving fast. Fortunately there were no casualty),” the police officer said.

Alibango allegedly tried to overtake another V-hire when the brakes malfunctioned. The van went out of control and eventually slammed into the road signage causing severe damage to the vehicle.

The area where the accident happened is near the place where a tourist bus plunged into a ravine in 2010 killing the driver and 21 Iranian nationals. — (FREEMAN)