INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MASBATE CITY — A secondary school in Cawayan town in Masbate province was forced to shift to a week-long modular distance learning (MDL) since Monday, March 20, after a firefight between military and suspected New People’s Army rebels erupted near the campus, leaving a soldier dead.
A report from the Army’s 9th Infantry Division said Tuesday, March 21, that the encounter happened on Monday around 10:30 a.m. It ended with Corporal Antonio Parreño Jr. dead due to gunshot wounds.
The report said when the rebels were seen near the Villahermosa National High School in Barangay Villahermosa, the residents panicked.
After receiving information from residents regarding the sighting of the rebels, the Army’s 2nd Infantry Battalion responded, and a firefight ensued between the two groups.
The school was then closed to ensure the safety of students, faculty, and staff.
Parents were told to pick up their children so that they could return home safely.
School principal Ma. Janette Bonogon announced that the school would shift to MDL for a week as a precautionary measure or until the situation in the area is deemed safe and the school can re-open. Around 715 students are covered by the shift.
Meanwhile, soldiers recovered at the scene of the clash an R4 assault rifle, an improvised pellet gun, three cell phones, two anti-personnel mines, a pair of binoculars, two improvised explosive devices, four blasting caps, wires for improvised explosive device, and other personal equipment believed to belong to the rebels who retreated after the firefight.
FRANSHEY MAE DRIO, CONTRIBUTOR
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