2 persons dead in IED blast in Zamboanga del Sur

Two unidentified persons were killed in a blast in Lower Bayao village, Tukuran town of Zamboanga del Sur. Authorities brought the remains to the Gamalinda Funeral Homes in Pagadian City. Photo taken at the Gamalinda Funeral Homes on Sept. 17, 2024. | PHOTO BY IVEY CARPENTERO

PAGADIAN CITY, Zamboanga del Sur — Two dead bodies were found at the site of an explosion that rocked Lower Bayao village in Tukuran town of this province at 1:45 a.m. on Tuesday, police said.

Lt. Col Rolando Vargas Jr., commander of the Army’s 53rd Infantry Battalion, confirmed that the blast was caused by an improvised explosive device (IED), and they were working with the police in investigating the incident.

Police Col. Restituto Pangusban, director of the Zamboanga del Sur provincial police, said witnesses who heard the explosion outside a beach resort saw a white utility vehicle with a broken rear door leaving the site towards the Tukuran cemetery. It left behind an exploded motorcycle and two unidentified dead bodies.

Witnesses also found a bag of ammonium nitrate near the crime scene, Pangusban said.

The Zamboanga del Sur Provincial Forensic Unit and the scene of the crime operatives recovered nails, cut metals, and other shrapnels near the blast site, he added.

Police Regional Director Brig Gen. Joey Boenn Masauding immediately ordered the area to be placed on heightened alert after the incident.

The explosion came as the province celebrated its 72nd Araw ng Zamboanga del Sur, a culmination of the weeklong festivities, with visitors coming from regional offices in the Zamboanga Peninsula.