7 dead in Quezon road accidents

CAMP VICENTE LIM, Laguna, Philippines – Seven people, including a two-year-old boy, were killed in separate road accidents along the Maharlika Highway in Quezon over the weekend.

Superintendent Danilo Morzo, police chief of Sariaya town, said an owner-type jeep went wayward, sideswiped a parked dump truck and plowed into a group of pedestrians about to cross the highway.

The incident left the jeep’s driver, Apolonio Dalawampu Jr., and pedestrian Joshua Dave Comienzo, 2, dead on the spot.

Injured were Comienzo’s mother, Leahrife, and Arnulfo Subayba, who was reportedly in critical condition.

Last Saturday, Joel Boy Ofla­ria, a student, was killed when his motorcycle smashed into two other motorcycles parked on the roadside along the Maharlika Highway in Plaridel town.

Police said Oflaria, who was not wearing a safety helmet, was rushed to the Doña Marta Memorial Hospital in Atimonan town but was declared dead on arrival due to severe head injuries.

Highway Patrol Group investigators said four other people were killed in similar road accidents along the Maharlika Highway. – With Michelle Zoleta