2 killed, 20 hurt in NLEX road acccident - reports

(Update) Two people were reported killed while more than 20 others were hurt after a passenger bus careened at the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) in Bulacan province before Monday noon. Initial reports from radio dzBB said the vehicular accident occurred along Kilometer 42 of the NLEX in Santa Rita village, Guiguinto town that involved a southbound passenger bus from Genesis Busline. Two women were initially reported killed while at least 20 other passengers were injured and rushed to the nearby Bulacan Provincial Hospital, the radio report added. The identities of the fatalities were not immediately available. "Okay naman. Stable naman ang vital signs (ng injured). Hinihintay lang namin yung transportation papunta sa hospital," an unnamed rescue personnel told dzBB. Renato Bartolo, a bus passenger from Pampanga, said their bus came from Bataan and was bound for Metro Manila when it swerved and was toppled over. The report also said that several lanes were immediately rendered impassable, with only one lane remaining open to traffic. A slippery road brought by rains coupled with the engine oil that spilled from the bus to the pavement both worsened the traffic movement in the area. An earlier report from radio dzMM did not indicate any fatality in another NLEX incident at Kilometer 30 but said that four people were injured, one of them in serious condition. Quoting personnel from the Manila North Tollways Corp (MMTC), the radio report said that aside from the Genesis Bus Line-owned vehicle, another passenger bus from Victory Liner and a truck carrying swine were also involved in the smashup. The incident caused the hogs on board the truck to be set lose, with some even crossing the road and briefly snarling traffic on the other side. Three lanes of the NLEX were also rendered not passable to vehicles, the report added. The two separate incidents are the second and third vehicular accidents to transpire at the NLEX within the day, after two trucks collided early morning at the highway's portion in Valenzuela City. Reports said that a dump truck carrying sand and gravel collided with a delivery truck carrying acetylene cylinders, causing the second truck's cargo to litter the road. The collision snarled southbound traffic for about four kilometers, from the toll plaza in NLEX to the toll plaza in Valenzuela. MNTC personnel managed to tow away the six-wheeler truck carrying the acetylene tanks but had to bring in heavier equipment to bring out the dump truck. - GMANews.TV