Army trainee dies of heat exhaustion in Isabela

Policemen aspiring to become members of the Special Action Force (SAF), an elite unit of the Philippine National Police, go through rigorous exercises at the SAF Training School at Fort Sto. Domingo in Sta. Rosa City, Laguna, in this photo that was published in the Inquirer on Jan. 31, 2016. On June 8, 2017, a trainee of the Army died of heat exhaustion in Camp Melchor dela Cruz, headquarters of the 5th Infantry Division, in Isabela. RAFFY LERMA

CAMP MELCHOR DELA CRUZ, Isabela – A 21-year-old trainee died here on June 8 due to heat exhaustion, the military reported on Sunday.

Jackson Lataan Manallog, of Cabagan town, collapsed Thursday afternoon and was brought to the Isabela Doctors General Hospital where he was declared dead at 10 p.m.

Manallog was among 134 trainees undergoing Candidate Soldier Course No. 454-2017 at the 5th Infantry Division (ID) Training School here.

Doctors said Manallog died due to “cardio-respiratory arrest, secondary to heat exhaustion” despite efforts to resuscitate him.

Maj. General Paul Atal, 5th ID commander, said Manallog’s immediate family would receive benefits “just like a regular soldier of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.”

The Army has ordered an investigation into the death of Manallog “in order to gather facts (and) to determine the circumstances (of his death).”

“All the selected recruits passed the prescribed examinations and had undergone the tedious process of selection. They were ranked according to the results of their examinations, both intellectually and physically,” said Lt. Col. Camilo Saddam, 5th ID assistant chief of staff for personnel.

The group was composed of college graduates, 51 who attended college and 61 high school graduates, the Army said. CBB/rga