BALANGA CITY, Bataan , Philippines – Thirteen persons, including a vacationing vice mayor of a Maguindanao town, were injured in a collision involving nine vehicles along the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX) in Dinalupihan, Bataan last Thursday.
The smashup was reportedly triggered by the heavy smoke coming from a grass fire from along the roadside in Barangay Pagalanggang, said Superintendent Alfred dela Roca, Dinalupihan police chief.
Mohammed Paglas, vice mayor of Datu Paglas town, and his driver Dante Esmeraldo, along with Reynaldo Jimenez, Jeffrey Jimenez and Ronnie Castillo, were rushed to the Bataan Peninsula Hospital in Dinalupihan for treatment.
Eight others – Michelle Alcazar, Simonitt Balon, Jocelyn Cortez, Ginalyn Sermo, Demie Lumaria, Edna Paoyon, Eric Seda, and Jhelyn Oliania – were brought to Angeles University Foundation Hospital in Angeles City, Pampanga.
Traffic investigator Onofre Punzalan Jr. said the accident occurred at about 2:27 p.m. as the vehicles involved were heading for Tarlac.
Motorists have reportedly been complaining about the burning of grass and palay stalks near the expressway as the smoke affects visibility in the area.