Death toll in Quezon bus accident rises to five

The death toll from the Quezon province bus accident on Sunday has gone up to five and authorities are keeping the bus driver under close watch. Quezon provincial disaster coordinating office head Henry Buzar said as of Monday morning, the number of casualties has risen to five dead and 52 injured. Initially, four were reported killed and 39 were injured. “Yung driver, medyo may tama sa ulo pero stable condition, binabantayan ng pulis natin (The driver suffered head injuries but is in stable condition. Police are keeping watch over him)," Buzar said in an interview on dzRH radio. Buzar said he will meet with the Philippine National Police (PNP)’s Highway Patrol Group and Land Transportation Office to see what charges can be filed against the driver and the bus operator.

Meanwhile, he said he will recommend to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) the installation of signages in the area where the accident occurred. “Sabi ko sa DPWH, lagyan ng signage na danger (I told the DPWH to place danger signs in the area)," he said. The initial investigation showed that the bus went out of control after its brakes failed as it was navigating a road in Pagbilao town in Quezon province. Buzar said the five fatalities included four women and one man. “Ayon sa isang pasahero na naiwan doon sa lugar, bandang 2:30 a.m., nawalan ng preno at nalaman ng pasahero na walang preno, sila ay nag-panic (A passenger said that at about 2:30 a.m., the bus lost its brakes and the passengers knew about it. They panicked)," Buzar said. “Yung bus galing Tacloban papuntang Cubao, naaksidente sa Pagbilao. Nahulog sa ravine kaninang mga 2:30 a.m. (The bus from Tacloban City heading to its terminal in Cubao when it fell into a ravine at 2:30 a.m.)," Quezon provincial police chief Senior Superintendent Erickson Velasquez said in an interview on dzBB radio Sunday. Sunday’s incident was the latest in a series of deadly bus accidents since June. In Cebu, some 20 Iranians died after the bus they were riding on plunged into a ravine in June. On August 18, at least 42 were killed when a bus fell into a ravine in Benguet province. Last week, beauty titlist Melody Gersbach and two others were killed after their car collided with a bus in Bicol. –VVP, GMANews.TV