DOTC orders inspection of LRT, MRT facilities after Ayala accident

Following an escalator accident that injured at least eight people Tuesday night, the Department of Transportation and Communications ordered Wednesday an inspection of elevators and escalators at the Light and Metro Rail Transit systems. DOTC spokesman Dante Velasco also apologized to commuters for the incident, saying they are working to make sure it does not happen again. "Patitingnan natin. Wakeup call ito para sa susunod makahanda tayo sa pangyayari. We will include all elevators for checkup para sa ating kababayang sumasakay ng MRT, pati LRT na rin, tingnan natin lahat," Velasco said in an interview on dzBB radio. (We will inspect these equipment. This is a wakeup call for us to make sure this does not happen again. We will include in the checkup all elevators and escalators of the LRT and MRT.) As of 6 a.m. Wednesday, a report by dzBB's Denver Trinidad said the escalator at the MRT Ayala station was still not working. Commuters had to walk up the stairs instead, the report added.

In Quezon City, dzBB's Glen Juego reported that the escalators at the MRT North Avenue station in Quezon City were placed under manual control, with some passengers wary of using it. Velasco said the inspection of the escalators, which he said are already 11 years old, will also include the computerized systems running them. Citing initial reports reaching him, he said at least 16 commuters fell from a malfunctioning escalator at the MRT Ayala terminal at 6:50 p.m. Tuesday. He said at least eight were injured and brought to the Ospital ng Makati, but he insisted they sustained only "very minor injuries." "Yung unang natumba, parang domino. Nahulog, nadamay ang iba. Eight ang very slightly injured pero mga natumba 16 (When the first passenger stumbled, it created a domino effect. Eight were very slightly injured although 16 passengers stumbled because of the malfunction)," he said. Velasco said they stopped the escalator at the Ayala MRT station and turned it on at 11 p.m. Tuesday to see what went wrong. "Pinatigil muna para sigurado (We have stopped the operation of the escalator to make sure it works properly)," he said. Velasco also apologized to the commuters for Tuesday night's inconvenience. "Humihingi kami ng paumanhin sa nasaktan, ito ang first time na nangyari ito. Tinitiyak natin hindi na mangyayari ito (We apologize for what happened. This was the first time it happened. We are making sure it does not happen again)," he said. "Ang importante preventive maintenance, hindi natin hintaying mag-breakdown (What is important is to ensure preventive maintenance. We should not wait for equipment to break down)," he added. — RSJ, GMANews.TV