2 killed as bus falls off Skyway

A highway patrol officer looks at the wreckage of a passenger bus as it is being towed to an impounding area after it fell off an elevated highway and plunged more than 30 feet below on a rainy Tuesday in Parañaque City. AP

MANILA, Philippines – A passenger bus plunged some 40 feet from the Skyway in Parañaque City Tuesday, killing two people, police said.

INQUIRER PHOTO / NINO JESUS ORBETA

Joven Hustol, 31, driver of the Dimple Star Transport bus with plate number TYU-606 and body number 7511, and passenger Anthony Abarra, 21, died as they were being treated for injuries, said Paranaque Medical Center Emergency security guard Clerito Legaspi.

Superintendent Edwin Butacan, Highway Patrol Group spokesman, said eight persons were rushed to the hospital – the driver, the conductor and six passengers.

The bus had been travelling northwards at around 11:10 a.m. when it fell from the Skyway and landed in front of the UPS 4 Marcelo Green West Service Road, said Butacan.

Citing reports from officers of Skyway, Butacan added that the Dimple Star bus had been seen racing with another bus before it lost control and fell off the ramp. He said authorities were not able to identify the other bus but were going to check whether CCTV cameras in the area recorded the accident.

Originally posted at 1:09 p.m.