Fourth Basilan ferry bombing victim dies

DAVAO CITY — The number of fatalities in last month’s bombing of a ferry boat in Lamitan, Basilan reached four as Renato Cestina, 43, died on Thursday at the burn center of the Davao Medical Center where he and seven other bombing victims were brought for treatment.

Cestina, chief cook of the ill-fated Doña Ramona ferry, sustained severe burns along with four other members of his family, including his wife Zenaida and three children, Shein, 10; Clark Anthony and Abigail, nine and seven years old, respectively.

Authorities blamed the Jemaah Islamiyah-linked Abu Sayyaf bandit group for the bombing of the Doña Ramona, which blew up as it was about to leave port for Zamboanga City on the morning of Aug. 28.

At least 30 persons were reported injured in the bombing, four of whom have died since the explosion.

Cestina was among eight severely burned victims airlifted to Davao City on Sept. 2.

Another one of those airlifted, Emmanuel Torres, 18, the ship’s kitchen helper, died on Sept. 6, also at the Mindanao Burn Center, while two other victims died while under treatment in Zamboanga City.

The first to die as a result of the bombing was 12-year-old Sonny Boy Hamac, son of ferry security officer T/Sgt. Cesar Hamac. Sonny accompanied his father on that fateful trip.

Sonny died on Aug. 30 at the Armed Forces Southern Command’s Camp Navarro Hospital while another victim, Ismain Olmoc, 30, died at the Brent Hospital in Zamboanga City on Sept. 3.

Cestina’s wife and three children were among those who were brought and are still confined at the Mindanao Burn Center, along with ferry passenger Juan Joseph, 25.

Meanwhile, Nicholas Urciada, 61, the ferry boat’s chief purser, was released last week after undergoing further treatment at the burn center.

The transfer of the Cestinas and the other victims to the Davao Medical Center was made upon the recommendation of the Department of Health, especially since it is the only hospital in Mindanao that has a burn treatment facility.