Mom, 2 kids killed as truck tilts, dumps sand; pa was guiding driver

A mother and her two young children were killed after being buried by a truckload of sand weighing about 15 tons inside a construction site barracks in Quezon City late Wednesday night.

It was the father who was guiding the driver of the truck as it maneuvered on loose, elevated ground before it tilted and accidently dumped its load on the structure. All he could do after the tragedy was blame the latter for not heeding his warning.

Senior Police Officer 2 Reynaldo Patiag said the ten-wheel truck fell on its side next to the workers’ quarters on Maria Clara Street in Barangay Sto. Domingo at around 11 p.m.

Killed were the wife and children of the construction site caretaker, JR Rabadajo. Patiag identified the victims as Jennylyn Tabajonda, 24, and minors Jessie and Cristelle, who were all asleep inside the barracks when the accident occurred.

The officer said the truck driver, Jerome Doctolero, hit a patch of loose earth which caused the hauler to tilt and lose its balance.

Rabadajo bitterly blamed the driver after losing his entire family in an instant. “I warned him about the soft portion but he ignored me and drove on,” he told investigators.

It took about an hour to dig the mother’s body out of the hill of sand, while that of her son Jessie, 3, was recovered at around 3 a.m. the next day. Two-year-old Cristelle, the youngest, was found at around 6 a.m. or seven hours after the accident.

The three were declared dead on arrival at United Doctors Medical Center.

The rescue effort required about 50 people, including government and private rescue teams, Patiag said.

Doctolero was held under police custody to face charges of reckless imprudence resulting in homicide, he added.