MRT-3 (File photo from Philippine Daily Inquirer)
A passenger of the Metro Rail Transit-3 (MRT-3) died after collapsing inside a train on Monday.
According to a statement released by the Department of Transportation (DOTr) on Monday evening, Marielle Ann Mar died in the hospital at 12:05 p.m., more than two hours after she collapsed inside a southbound train as it approached Ortigas Station.
According to DOTr, the airconditioning unit in the coach was working at the time of the incident.
The DOTr said that MRT-3 staff tried to revive the 26-year-old passenger before emergency personnel arrived and brought her to Victor R. Potenciano Medical Center in Mandaluyong City.
It is unclear though what caused Mar’s death.
“On the preexisting condition, background, and autopsy, the family has not released any statement,” the DOTr said. “We respect their privacy to mourn the loss of a loved one.”
The DOTr and the MRT-3 management said that they had extended assistance to Mar’s family, including the defrayment of medical and funeral expenses.
The incident, which happened during off-peak hours, was just the latest in a string of mishaps that had hit the country’s busiest train system.
Apart from the nearly daily technical glitches that plagued the MRT-3, a passenger also lost her arm in a freak accident last month after she fell on the tracks as the train left Ayala Station.
Fortunately, doctors were able to reattach Angeline Fernando’s arm.
A few days later, a train got uncoupled as it approached Buendia Station, forcing around 130 passengers to walk on the tracks. /atm