The death toll from the Ceres Bus Liner crash in Antique province rose to 18, Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) head Broderick Train said Thursday.
“Unfortunately, one of the critically wounded… expired earlier this morning, so our reported dead became 18,” said Train in Filipino in an interview with dzBB.
Six passengers remained critically wounded, while four were now in stable condition after the bus plunged into a ravine in Hamtic, Antique, Tuesday.
The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board has since reached out to the insurance provider of bus operator Vallacar Transit Inc. (VTI) about the claims for victims. Vallacar Transit owns Ceres Bus Liner.
Missing construction safety signages on the highway, meanwhile, could have contributed to the tragic bus accident, said Ceres Bus Liner spokesperson Dindo Danao in an interview with ABS-CBN TeleRadyo in Filipino.
“There is construction activity around the area. Based on media reports, the safety signages disappeared during construction,” he said.
Danao noted that Governor Rhodora Cadiao had already requested a detour of the bus route due to the ongoing construction in the area where the tragedy occurred.
The local official described the place as a “killer curve” and called for the national government’s help to ensure public safety.
“With that many deaths, that road must be abandoned… and make another road to make that area safe,” Cadiao said.
A female survivor earlier claimed the driver had stopped the bus and appeared to fix something under the vehicle before starting to run it again. She said the bus seemed to have accelerated before plunging down the mountain.
Danao said Vallacar Transit was suspending voluntarily all 12 bus units while an investigation is ongoing. He added the bus company was covering the medical expenses of all injured individuals and would provide burial assistance to the deceased.