16 hurt as van falls into ravine

At least 15 passengers and the driver were hurt when a van-for-hire fell off a 14-meter-deep ravine at Babag, a mountain barangay of Cebu City.

Witnesses said at 2:10 p.m., the van was speeding in a downhill curve in sitio Togup, when it suddenly swerved and hit a narra tree at the side of the road.

The collision threw the van back a few feet causing it to roll once before falling over the ravine.

About 20 men who just finished taking lunch after half a day’s work wrapping mangoes from the tree saw the vehicle fell on the ravine. They rushed to the vehicle, which landed roof-first on the ravine floor, to help the passengers.

Julito Badago Jr., Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (CITOM) investigator on the scene, said he saw no skid marks along the mountain highway.
He said this could mean that the vehicle lost its brakes or the driver fell asleep while he was driving.

The passengers were carried to a six-wheeler truck owned by Babag 2 and were rushed to the Cebu Doctors’ Hospital.

Manolo Ibona, the driver of the truck, said one of the passengers seated beside him on their way to the hospital, told him that the female passenger beside the driver tapped the driver’s shoulder to wake him. The vehicle passed a nearby gas station located about a hundred meters from the narra tree they hit.

Ibona said the female passenger told her that it was already too late for the driver to avoid hitting the tree when he opened his eyes.

“Kusog gyud kaayo og padagan. Wala man mi kadungog nga ni brake, nibangga sya sa kahoy unya nibalintong paubos. Mura gyud og salida nakuyawan gyud mi kay dire ra gud mi duol,” said Ian Patalinghug, one of the farmers who helped the victims.

The driver and at the same time the operator of a GT Express van (GWH 294) from Balamban town was identified as Rustom Tundag. He also suffered head injuries from the broken windshield.

Patalinghug said some had broken hips, bloodied eyes and heads.

He said it didn’t take them long to rescue because there were many people who helped.

Police also recovered two sacks of bags and other belongings from the passengers.