Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque. FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque revealed early on Wednesday that he rode the C-130 military cargo plane a few days before it crashed in Jolo, Sulu province last Sunday.
He boarded the plane on July 1 to deliver medical supplies — including COVID-19 vaccines, personal protective equipment, and mechanical ventilators — to Iloilo City, Roque said in the weekly taped briefing with President Rodrigo Duterte.
“We turned over some medical supplies in Iloilo City and the C-130 plane that crashed was the same plane we rode,” he said in Filipino.
“Fortunately, it appears that it was a different crew who were there, but still there were some who died. Our condolences. But when I talked with some of the crew members of the flight we were on, they were really in shock. They knew that it could have happened to them too,” he added.
The C-130 plane, which was carrying at least 85 people, reportedly “missed the runway” and crashed in Sulu province.
As of Tuesday night, the death toll stood at 53 — three of them civilian residents of Barangay Bangkal in Patikul, Sulu.