LUCENA CITY––Three road workers died Tuesday from alleged natural gas poisoning in Mulanay town in Quezon province, police said Wednesday.
The Quezon police reported that Jesus Largo III, 19; Mac Mac Valenzuela, 18; and Sandy Basillo, 27, of Labo town in Camarines Norte province, had dug a 7.5 meters deep hole for the construction of a bridge in Barangay Patabog around 3 p.m. when they suddenly lost consciousness.
They were taken to a local clinic but died on the way. Quoting a medical report, the police said the victims suffocated from a still unknown natural gas.
Staff Master Sergeant Allan Ayeng, the case investigator, said other workers also smell toxic gas in the same deep hole, particularly when water seeps in.
“The engineers from the PRDP (Philippine Rural Development Project) are conducting an urgent meeting to address the situation,” Ayeng said in a phone interview.
He said the local police were conducting further investigation.