3 killed, 19 hurt as bus rams car in Batangas City

BATANGAS CITY, Philippines – Three people were killed and 19 others were injured after a utility vehicle collided with an ALPS passenger bus along Diversion Road in Barangay Balagtas here on Friday, the police said. Supt. Manuel Abu, the city police chief, identified the fatalities as Louie Escarel, 42; Virgilio Yap, 42; and Taha Tua, 49, all security guards working for the Ganilla Security Agency. Injured were Rodolfo Cadevida, 70; Donata Cadevida, 63; Milagros Medrano, 43; Carmen Palo, 60; and 15 others who were brought to the Batangas Regional Hospital for treatment. Initial police investigation said that at about 10:30 a.m., the victims were traveling toward the south portion of the road aboard a Mitsubishi Adventure (Plate No. ZDR-774) when the driver, identified as Yap, decided to overtake. Because of this, Abu said that the driver lost control of the vehicle and it bumped the front portion of the Manila-bound ALPS passenger bus (Plate No. DVM-788) traveling on the opposite side of the road. Due to the collision's high impact, Yap and his two other companions died on the spot while the 19 bus passengers sustained injuries on different body parts. Bus driver Ronnie Flores was left unscathed but the police said they invited him to the station for "further questioning." - GMANews.TV