Hundreds of Black Nazarene devotees injured, fall ill during procession

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Red Cross’ first-aid and paramedic teams attended to 256 devotees who suffered minor injuries or fell ill during the procession of the Black Nazarene on Monday.

PRC secretary general Gwendolyn Pang said that as of 4 p.m., 101 devotees with minor injuries, mostly foot injuries, or those who felt exhausted, experienced fainting, chest pain, seizures, dehydration, low blood sugar and high blood pressure were treated.

Another 138 devotees, had their blood pressure taken, Pang said.

The PRC said it transported 17 devotees to the Ospital ng Maynila, Philippine General Hospital (PGH) and University of Santo Tomas Hospital. Among them were a man who had a possible elbow dislocation while another was a pregnant woman who was transported to OsMa after she felt dizzy.

The PRC also set up a water station located at Plaza Lacson in Sta. Cruz, which had served over 1,700 people, s of this posting. The humanitarian agency also mobilized four rubber boats and other rescue vehicles such as the rescue truck, fire truck, amphibian seacraft and other transport vehicles for possible deployment.

A total of 350 PRC staff and volunteers with 19 ambulances were deployed in different areas in Metro Manila to render first aid to injured patients at the Feast of Black Nazarene. Along the procession routes in Quiapo, the Red Cross set up 11 first-aid and health stations, with a total of 50 ambulances.

Other small aid groups also reported more than 100 injuries. A pharmaceutical company that set up a first-aid booth near Quiapo Church reported giving first aid to 70 people for foot injuries or monitoring devotees’ blood pressures.

Another first-aid station run by volunteers from Laguna who stationed themselves across the Church east of Quezon Boulevard reported they took in around 40 people who had foot injuries or who got dizzy.

The PGH surgery ward treated three people who had serious foot injuries, including a Japanese man named Katsumi Tanaka, 20, of Malate. A resident of Sampaloc, Melvin Manangon, 34, suffered a fractured foot and was referred to the hospital’s orthopedic department.