Debris from the Christmas Day collision between a jeepney and a Partas bus is strewn on the roadside in Agoo, La Union. INQUIRER FILE
Footage taken by the dashboard camera (dashcam) of the Partas Bus involved in the Christmas Day collision in La Union failed to play and reveal crucial details of the deadly crash, an official of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) said Thursday.
LTFRB Spokesperson Aileen Lizada said the file on the SD card submitted to them by Partas could not be read by their equipment and needed to be converted to a readable format.
“Dapat i-convert. Hindi mabasa. It’s not like an ordinary card na isaksak mo isang card reader, kagaya nung nakita natin sa CCTV,” she said.
“Ang problema nung dashcam, based on the report given to me, embedded ito sa bus. Meaning, paggawa nung bus kasama na yung kanyang dashcam,” Lizada explained in an interview with dzMM.
The dashcam footage is significant to the crash investigation because it could show who had the “last the chance” to turn away.
“Kailangan kasi namin makita yung sa labas, yung actual na aksidente, to see how busy the street was, the road was, tapos ilang sasakyan na andun, kung sino yung may last chance sana,” she said.
Twenty people, including seven children, died when a Partas bus collided with a jeepney in Agoo, La Union, at about 3:30 a.m. last Dec. 25. The LTFRB is investigating the incident to determine who is responsible for the killer crash.
Failing to view the initially view the video file, Lizada, together with the representative of Partas, went to LTFRB’s Information System Management Division to have the SD card checked further. However, their technicians also failed to play it.
“Kaya ang sabi namin we do not want it to be on our shoulder. You convert it to the proper format,” the LTFRB spokesperson said when asked if the board was sure Partas gave the right SD card.
On Wednesday, the LTFRB served the preventive suspension on Partas Bus that will last for 30 days. /cbb