Quarry sites in Tarlac village ordered closed

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO — Mayor Reynaldo Catacutan of Capas, Tarlac province, on Wednesday ordered the closure of quarry sites in a village where three children drowned after taking a dip in a pond that formed due to quarrying.

The bodies of siblings Raymar, 9, and Richel Bruno, 7, and their playmate Eunice Gutierrez, 10, were found floating on the pond on Tuesday. The children lived 1.2 kilometers from the quarry site.

Private property

Catacutan had tagged a contractor of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) behind the quarrying. But BCDA officials said the agency had not hired a contractor to quarry in the site.

After investigating the incident, the BCDA said the drowning happened inside a private property at Sitio Kalangitan in Barangay Cutcut Dos.

Catacutan said he had also ordered the refilling of the sunken land areas where rainwater had accumulated.

He said he was waiting for the recommendation of the town’s legal officer and the police on whether to file a case against the landowner.

The quarry site is beside a road, without any fence or warning for caution. The contractor had earlier denied extracting soil and sand from the site, saying it bought materials instead from a supplier. —TONETTE OREJAS