15 killed after truck plummets into ravine in T’boli, Philippines
“Based on eyewitness accounts, the truck lost its brakes.”
Fifteen people, including children, have been killed in the southern Philippines after their flatbed truck plummeted into a ravine. The vehicle was carrying around 30 people home from a trip to the beach when the driver lost control near the town of T’boli in the latest deadly crash on the nation’s dangerous roads.
T’boli town police investigator George Tabayan says the dead included children aged between one to six years old, with at least 11 other people rushed to hospital due to their injuries.
“Based on eyewitness accounts, the truck lost its brakes. We will conduct further investigations on the actual cause.”
The group had come from a swimming party at a beach in neighbouring town and were on their way home when the accident occurred. Poor roads are common in the Philippines, where inadequately maintained buses and poorly trained drivers form the backbone of land transport options.
In June, 13 people including a bride-to-be were killed when the truck they were riding on after attending a traditional pre-wedding ceremony rolled over on a mountain road.
SOURCE: Agence France-Presse
