31 hurt in Cebu vehicular crash

CEBU, Philippines – A total of 31 people, including 18 minors, were hurt when the vehicle they boarded on their way home rammed into the foot of a hill in the mountain village of Cansomoroy in Balamban town, Cebu. 

The victims had just attended a youth camp in Sudlon, Barangay Lahug, Cebu City, and were on their way home to Asturias town, passing through the mountainous Transcentral Highway past 1 pm Wednesday, November 1, according to Balamban Police Station Deputy Chief SPO4 Revelito Tadique.

They were onboard a government-owned vehicle, Foton Tornado (SKV-552), driven by Axel Abrasaldo, 51. Police investigators were still checking which office owned the vehicle. The victims are community members of the Grace Gospel Church in Asturias town.

Tadique told Rappler that Abrasaldo was maneuvering his vehicle on a steep portion of Barangay Cansomoroy when the brakes failed, sending the vehicle toward a concrete barrier. 

The barrier was placed by the Department of Public Works and Highways in 2010 after a tourist bus plunged into the cliff, killing 21 people, mostly Iranian tourists.

To avoid overturning the vehicle and falling into the cliff, Abrasaldo swerved fully to the left, crashing into the base of a hill. The crash injured the driver and his 30 passengers, including 18 minors.

Tadique, whose team was the first to respond to the incident, said Abrasaldo was still unable to talk when interviewed by police because of the injuries he sustained. One minor and an adult suffered broken legs. 

The police officer said he saw one victim sustaining a broken nose. The others suffered minor injuries.

At least 3 of the victims, including Abrasaldo, were transferred to the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City due to the seriousness of their injuries, Tadique added.

The steep slope and the blind curve make the area accident-prone.

Last October 28, a car fell into the cliff in the area, killing the driver. On the same day, a 3-year-old girl died after the motorcycle she was riding on crashed into a passenger van, also in the same area. – Rappler.com