BY DOMINIQUE GABRIEL G. BAÑAGA
BACOLOD City – A 40-ton cane truck fell on its side and crushed a small house in Barangay Antipolo, Pontevedra, Negros Occidental early yesterday morning. Two people were killed and one was injured.
Authorities identified the fatalities as 30-year-old JR Cordero and his mother, 58-year-old Ermie Cordero.
JR’s sister, 12-year-old Leona, survived but sustained multiple injuries.
Pontevedra police traffic investigator Police Corporal Genesis Beñas, said the truck driven by 46-year-old Henry Salgado, Sr. was heading west and was making a turn when he overshot, causing the truck to fall on to its side and crashing in to the Cordero family’s home.
The victims were trapped for several hours in the wreckage and ultimately both JR and Ermie were declared dead on arrival at a hospital in La Carlota City, Negros Occidental.
Salgado, meanwhile, was hospitalized after the incident. He is believed to be inebriated at the time incident.
It was also not the first instance that the house was involved in an accident.
In September of 2021, a truck also smashed into the house of the Cordero family. No one was injured in that incident, although the family’s dog was killed.
Salgado could face criminal charges over the incident, and police are still waiting for the decision of the Cordero family if they would press charges./PN
