2 dead, 4 injured as truck falls on shanties under Manila bridge

MANILA, Philippines – A man and his 8-year-old grandson, who lived under a bridge in Manila, died when a 10-wheeler truck lost its brake and fell on their shanty on Wednesday, September 27. 

The truck driver, his porter, and two residents of adjacent shanties were injured, according to police and Red Cross rescuers who rushed to the site. 

The fatalities were identified as John Dave Baltazar, 8, and Danilo Balthazar, 70. 

Those who were wounded were truck driver Reynaldo Acosta, his unidentified porter, and residents Julius Clark Baltazar, 12, and Carissa Sarias.

Police said Acosta was driving a Yangming 20-foot container van to Sta Mesa when he lost his brakes along the Zamora Interlink Bridge around 3 pm, Wednesday. The truck driver tried to stop the container van by ramming it onto the railings, but it fell on the shanties under the bridge. 

As of posting, Red Cross rescuers were still extracting the victims.

The accident caused heavy traffic, as the Zamora bridge was temporarily closed. – Rappler.com