5 killed, 1 hurt as truck falls into ravine

BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya, Philippines – Five people were killed while another was critically injured when the truck they were riding in fell into a 50-foot deep ravine in mountainous Diadi town here just before midnight Friday.

Reports said the Isuzu forward truck based in San Pedro, Tumauini, Isabela was going north when its brakes malfunctioned while negotiating along a zigzag stretch of the national highway in Barangay Balite, Diadi town at around 11:45 p.m. Friday.

The truck driver, Rodolfo Francisco, lost control of the vehicle, causing it to fall off the cliff, said Senior Inspector Eugenio Garcia, Diadi police chief.

Senior Superintendent Pedro Danguilan, provincial police director, said it took his men several hours to extricate the victims from the wreckage, especially Francisco who was pinned by the truck’s engine.

Besides Francisco, also killed in the accident were Carlina Albano of San Pedro, Tumauini; Amor Ramos and Joey Tolentino, both of Ngarag, Cabagan; and Maila Dumalanta of Osmeña, Ilagan town, all in neighboring Isabela province.

Still in serious condition is Analyn Sarangay of Capo, Ilagan, while the truck’s owner, Federico Albano, was miraculously unhurt.