Bus crashes in Pugo, LU; 2 killed, 15 hurt

 Bus firm assures aid to victims 

A Quezon City-bound bus slammed into a roadside tree after its brake system malfunctioned on Tuesday morning, Jan. 3, 2023, in Pugo, La Union. 

PUGO, La Union --A bus conductor and a baby died while at least 15 passengers were injured after a Quezon City-bound bus suffered mechanical trouble and rammed into a tree along Palispis-Aspiras highway in Sitio Ambiongan, Barangay Cares, here, on Tuesday, Jan. 3.
      Mayor Kurt Walter Martin identified the fatalities as Josefino Rambaoa, bus conductor, a native of San Fabian, Pangasinan; Hydelene Hufular, 23, a resident of San Fernando City, La Union and Mervilyn Lagmay, 26, and a resident of Mandaluyong City.
    He said the bus conductor was pinned between the wreckage and the acacia tree and died on the spot.
    According to a report, 15 passengers were given immediate medical attention at the Pugo rural health unit after sustaining minor injuries. Five seriously injured passengers, however, were rushed to the La Union Medical Center where one of them died while being provided medical attention.
    Initial police investigation showed that the ill-fated bus with 42 passengers left its terminal in Baguio City at around 9:30 a.m. and was bound for Cubao, Quezon City.
    Some of the injured passengers of the ill-fated bus were rushed to the Agoo District Hospital while others who sustained slight injuries were given immediate medical attention at the nearby Pugo covered court.
Initial police investigation showed that the ill-fated bus left its terminal in Baguio City at around 9:30 a.m. and was bound for Cubao, Quezon City.
    Upon reaching the vicinity of the accident site, the hydro brakes of the vehicle allegedly malfunctioned that caused the driver to lose control of the bus which rammed into a tree on the side of the road at around 11 a.m.
    Personnel of the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, Pugo Fire Station, Pugo Municipal Police Station and volunteers immediately responded to the accident scene to extricate the pinned passengers.
    The conductor was declared dead on the spot by responding rescuers.
    The management of Victory Liner assured that it will extend the appropriate support to the victims of a road accident on Tuesday that killed three bus occupants and injured 20 other passengers.
    Arnel Gabaig, Victory Liner terminal master in Baguio City, with some personnel of the bus company, visited the victims who were confined at the La Union Medical Center in nearby Agoo town and those who sought further medical attention at the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center to provide for their medical needs.
    He said that the company will shoulder all the medical expenses of those who were treated in various medical facilities in La Union and Baguio City and will give compensation to the families of the fatalities.
    The terminal master said that the family of the bus conductor who was one of the fatalities will be getting the necessary benefits from the management and the employees union.
    On Tuesday, three died and at least 20 others were injured after a Quezon City-bound Victory Liner bus suffered mechanical trouble and rammed into a tree along Palispis-Aspiras Highway in Sitio Ambiongan, Barangay Cares.
    Probers are still conducting an in-depth investigation on the cause of the accident while appropriate charges are being readied by the local police against the bus driver.