Death toll in Sulu C-130 crash rises to 53

This photo circulating on social media and also among top military officers in Mindanao shows the scene at the site in Barangay Bangkal of Patikul, Sulu, where the C-130 plane that left Lumbia airport earlier in the morning crashed at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday, July 4, killing at least 59 people, a military source said. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

ZAMBOANGA CITY — The casualties among soldiers in Sunday’s crash of the Philippine Air Force’s C-130 Hercules cargo plane has climbed to 50, a top official of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said.

This brings the total death toll in Sunday’s accident to 53, three of whom are villagers of Bangkal in Patikul, Sulu.

AFP chief Gen. Cirilito Sobejana said the 50th casualty among military personnel, whom he did not identify, succumbed late Monday night to serious chemical burns in the face.

Sobejana added that the soldier may also have inhaled smoke from the burning aircraft, which could have aggravated his medical condition.

The soldier was being attended to at the West Metro Medical Center here.