Rites urged in site where Singson’s chopper crashed to drive away evil ‘anitos’

BONTOC, Mountain Province – Tribal folk at Barangay Bayyo here are asking members of Team Unity to butcher pigs and chicken in the area where the chopper senatorial candidate Luis “Chavit” Singson of Team Unity rode in crashed nearly killing him and three others.

Tribal rites were needed to be performed in the area where the copper crashed so that no accident would happen there in the future, the local said.

“The ‘bad anitos (evil spirits)’ should be driven out so they wouldn’t commit more mischief,” a tribal elder said.

TU members haven’t yet responded to the request which residents said, “would foster more unity among the people.”

Singson, along with three other persons suffered minor injuries during the crash which police said was caused by thick clouds since the pilot couldn’t see where the chopper was going.

The incident happened in a mountainous area here around 2:30 p.m. on April 19.

Chief Supt. Eugene Martin, deputy regional director for administration of the regional police office said the R-44 Robinson Helicopter with tail number RPC2782 R-44, is a four-seater helicopter made in the United States.

According to Martin, the helicopter was damaged. He said Chavit’s group had just left Bontoc town proper where he had a dialogue with local government executives and was enroute to Banawe and Lagawe towns in Ifugao to meet with the provincial governor when the accident happened.

The dialogue coincided with the “Lang-ay” festivities in Bontoc.

Police reports said aside from Chavit, other occupants of the chopper were Captain Diosdado Lumanlan, his staff identified as Riot Reyes, and photographer Randy Hormillosa.

Martin immediately sent a police team led by the provincial director of Mt. Province to conduct an investigation on the incident.

According to reports, heavy fog blanketed the flight path of the helicopter while it was flying in the area of Barangay Bayyo.

With every low visibility, the pilot reportedly hovered near a mountainside while looking for a flat area to land.

However, a strong gust of wind suddenly blew forcing the tail part of the chopper to hit some vegetation.

As a result, the pilot lost control of the aircraft then hit the mountainside causing the aircraft to go down on its side and roll down the mountain at least three times.

The chopper reportedly stopped rolling some 20 meters above the Banaue-Benguet road in Barangay Bayyo.

Residents in the barangay rushed Singson and his men to the nearby Banaue hospital. – With AD