MANILA, Philippines — The lead vehicle escorting the “andas” or carriage bearing the image of the Black Nazarene through the slow procession back to the Quiapo Church, was damaged as devotees jostled and swarmed towards the image.
In photos posted on Facebook by P. Maj. Gideon Ines Jr., chief of the investigation division of the Makati City police, it could be seen that the orange pickup truck sustained several dents on its body with its window also smashed.
“Mga amoy alak, lumalaki ang mga mata yan ba ang mga deboto? Sinira at inapak-apakan pa ang LRAD at lead vehicle ng andas,” Ines wrote on his post.
As of 11 a.m., the image of the Black Nazarene has reached Arlegui Street. It left the Quirino Grandstand at around 4 a.m.
A total of 13,624 police officers were deployed to ensure the security of participants of the Traslacion in the streets of Manila, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) earlier said.
Authorities expect 6 million devotees to participate in this year’s Traslación.