CAMP OLIVAS, Pampanga – Twenty-four people died and scores were hurt when a mini-bus plying between Nueva Ecija and Ilocos Sur plunged into a deep ravine at Barangay Capiintalan, Carranglan, Nueva Ecija shortly before noon Tuesday.
Senior Supt. Antonio Yarra, of the Nueva Ecija Provincial Police Office, stationed in Cabanatuan City, said retrieval of bodies pinned by the ill-fated bus is currently ongoing.
“Rescue operations are ongoing. We already have the body count numbering to 24. Government and private rescue teams have encountered difficulties in the retrieval of bodies because of hard terrain,” said Yarra over the phone.
Some of the passengers who were retrieved were brought to hospitals in nearby towns, said Yarra.
Yarra said Leo Maris mini-bus left Isabela bound for Candon, Ilocos, Sur when the driver, whose identity has yet to be established, apparently failed to apply brake while negotiating a sharp curve along Sitio Nursery in the said village past 11 a.m.
The bus, Yarra said plunged into a ravine with an estimated deep of 100-feet. The vehicle was total wrecked.
Yarra said no information available as to the number of passengers on board since no one from the bus firm coordinated with the investigators.
“Our priority now is to get all the passengers pinned by the bus,” said Yarra.