MEMBERS of a rescue team look for the back rider of a motorcycle driver who was killed when his vehicle was rammed by a runaway 14-wheel truck loaded with sand. No back rider was found although the accident on Tuesday morning along Marcos Highway in Antipolo City also left the truck driver and his two helpers injured. MARIANNE BERMUDEZ
A collision among a motorcycle, a taxi cab and a runaway 14-wheel truck loaded with sand left a man dead and three others hurt in Antipolo City yesterday morning.
Manny Lumabao, head of the operations unit of the Antipolo City Rescue which rushed to the scene, said that Jerome Roselio, the 30-year-old motorcycle rider, died on the spot after he hit his head on the pavement when the impact threw him off his vehicle.
The taxi driver, Mark Neil Sanchez, was unhurt but the driver of the truck, Edwin Baluyot, and his two helpers identified as Jonathan and Michael Henson were rushed to Amang Rodriguez Medical Center in Marikina City for injuries.
‘Mountain of sand’
The three, Lumabao said, spent several minutes under “a mountain of sand” and had to be dug out after the truck spilled its cargo.
The accident took place on Marcos Highway, Sitio Cabading, around 6 a.m. after the 14-wheeler truck lost its brakes as it was going down a steep slope on the road.
As the runaway truck gained momentum, its driver, Baluyot frantically motioned to motorists to move out of the way.
His hand signals were seen by the taxi driver, Sanchez, who was able to maneuver his cab to the side of the road although it did not escape being hit by the truck which next slammed into the motorcycle driven by Roselio.
A bystander said that when the two vehicles collided, there was a loud explosion followed by a fire which lasted for several minutes.
The truck, however, went on for several meters before it rammed a row of trees by the side of the road.
Taxi driver praised
Lumabao, meanwhile, lauded Sanchez for his actions. He said that instead of stopping after his cab was hit by the truck, Sanchez continued driving and screaming at other motorists to get out of the runaway vehicle’s way.
“He’s actually a hero,” Lumabao added.
Rescue workers, meanwhile, spent several hours digging through the mountain of sand that had spilled onto the road after Sanchez told them that Roselio had a back rider at the time of the accident.
However, they failed to find anyone.
The police said they were preparing to file charges of reckless imprudence resulting in homicide and multiple physical injuries against Baluyot.