Departing seaman meets tragedy at take-out counter

As police bomb squad teams sifted through the debris looking for clues in yesterday’s explosion that rocked Glorietta 2 shopping mall, the bodies of the dead lay covered in blankets on the floor of the adjacent car park being used as an emergency medical assessment area.

People inside the mall scampered towards the exits when the blast shook Glorietta, one of the busiest shopping malls in Metro Manila.

But not Lanie Ogad Arroyo, who was looking for her husband killed instantly by the explosion.

Lanie claimed her husband, Anthony Arroyo, was buying take-out food at the Luk Yuen restaurant when the explosion took place.

She said her husband was planning to treat their friends for a send-off party. Arroyo was supposed to fly to Germany today to work as a seaman.

Lanie said yesterday’s explosion simply shattered their dreams and literally turned them into dust.

Taxi driver Mario Em, for his part, claimed he had just dropped off two female passengers at the mall when the blast hurled them against his vehicle, killing them instantly.

He said he pulled one of the victims, who was pregnant, from underneath his car.

“The blast was so loud I lost my hearing,” he said.

“It was so powerful,” clothing store clerk Jeric Balendes later told rescuers treating his cuts and bruises.

“The roof just collapsed on us. I could hear my three co-workers screaming. I got out through a small hole. I don’t know if they got out,” he said.

“One man who was in front of me was already dead,” witness Dennis Inigo said.

“There was a child but we don’t know where the child is now,” he said. “The man’s wife was with me a while ago and her leg was shattered. Many people falling on top of each other. It was loud, and then it became dusty.”

Arel Virtusio said the explosion was so strong that it was felt up to the third level of the mall. Virtusio claimed seeing some people lying on the ground.

Antonio San Juan, a chef in Kimpura restaurant located just across Glorietta 2, said he heard a loud thud before smoke and dust suddenly billowed out from blast scene.

“The customers then scampered to different directions,” San Juan said.

Carlo Cruz said he was about to meet his wife at the mall when the explosion occurred.

Cruz said that he is not yet sure whether his wife Lesli is among the wounded.

“The last time I spoke with her over the telephone was around 1:25 p.m. where she told me that she is already in Glorietta. I was between Glorietta 1 and 2 then. But after the blasts I had no more contact with my wife. I cannot even contact her through her cellphone,” he said.

“There was a sudden explosion,” one of the injured, Christine Galope told rescuers while treating her injuries. “The roof just collapsed on me.”

Her companion, 24-year-old Teresita dela Cruz, also sustained wounds in the hands.

Dela Cruz said everybody was running to save himself.

“We just wanted to get out and save ourselves. We weren’t able anymore to bring our personal belongings.”

Both Galope and Dela Cruz were thankful that they are still alive and nothing really serious happened to them.

Carmen Enriquez, 81, was with her daughters inside the mall when the explosion happened.

“We just went there to eat. It is good that we are able to get out immediately. One of the guards helped us,” said Enriquez, in a wheelchair.

Her daughter, Cristine Lee, said they were walking near the “Chef d’ Angelo” restaurant in the second floor of Glorietta 2 when they felt the loud explosion. “There was smoke everywhere. There was no smell and we couldn’t see a thing,” she said. -With Jose Rodel Clapano, AP, AFP