Police looks into Danao vehicle collision: Did driver fall asleep?

An officer from Danao City looks for the dashcam of the ill-fated black Mitsubishi Mirage G4 that figured in a fatal road accident in their city last February 21, 2023. Three family members died in the accident. CDN Digital Photo |  Paul Lauro

CEBU CITY, Philippines – Traffic investigators continue to look into what caused the fatal vehicular accident in Danao City, Cebu that claimed the lives of three family members on Tuesday, February 21, 2023.

Among the angles that investigators are looking into is the possibility that the driver of the black sedan fell asleep behind the wheel.

Police Master Sergeant Ronald Gomez, the investigator assigned to the case, said seaman Erwin Bacalso Mondejar could have fallen asleep, causing his black Mitsubishi Mirage G4 sedan to hit an oncoming truck along the Cebu Nautical Highway in Brgy. Dunggoan, Danao City with his family on board.

Erwin, his wife Imelda, and their daughter Erin Bliss died in the accident. Their eldest son, Imer Betelguese, was the only one who survived the tragedy.

Gomez, in an interview with CDN Digital, said Erwin may have fallen asleep, which would explain why their car hit the wing van from the opposite lane before crashing into a nearby mango tree. 

“Pero ato pa ning palawman para mabaw-an nato unsay tinud-anay nga nahitabo sa trahedya,” said Gomez. 

(But we will dig deeper so we can truly find out what happened in this tragedy.)

Based on initial findings from the police, the Mondejars’ sedan hit the truck on its left side, causing it to spin out of control before crashing into the mango tree. 

“Naigo ra ang driver’s side sa truck. Kung head-on collision to, napasok unta to ang auto (ilawom sa truck),” Gomez explained.

(It only hit the driver’s side of the truck. If it was head on collision, the car would have been under the truck.)

The police officer added that the driver of the wing van, identified as Nolin Batobalonos, claimed to have kept blowing his vehicle’s horn when he saw the sedan speeding toward them from the other lane.

“Naa say mga lumulupyo duul nakadungog atong panahona nga naay kusog nga busina,” said Gomez. 

(There were also residents in the area who said they heard the loud sound of the horn.)

“Possible sad gyud. Nag sige ug busina ang truck unya basin nakamata ang driver (sa sedan)… alanganin na (mulikay). Wala ma head-on, nakaigo siya sa driver’s side sa truck unya basin mao to nga nituyok (before siya nibangga sa manga),” he added. 

(It’s really possible [that he fell asleep]. The truck driver kept sounding his horn and maybe the driver of the sedan woke up but it might have been too late. It was not a head-on collision, the driver’s side of the truck was what got hit and maybe that’s what caused the car to spin before hitting the mango tree.)

Batobalonos and his co-worker, namely Roldan Dino Guerra, were traversing the northbound lane when the accident happened. They were headed to Bantayan Island to deliver sacks of chicken feed from a warehouse in Consolacion town, northern Cebu.

Police confirmed Guerra’s earlier claims that the truck did not counterflow, and had only started gaining speed after the driver and his truck boy had lunch in a nearby eatery. 

“Menor ra daw ilahang dagan kay usa, bug-at ilahang dala,” Gomez said. 

(They were driving slow because their load was heavy.)

Chances of retrieving the footage from the ill-fated sedan’s dashcam also remained slim, as investigators discovered that the dashcam’s hardware had been completely destroyed. 

“Nabungkag gyud,” said Gomez. 

(It was totally destroyed.)

In the meantime, the police have already been in coordination with Erwin’s first-degree cousin.

The Mondejars came from Macrohon town in Southern Leyte, and arrived in Cebu around Tuesday dawn, police said. The family came to the island province to initially oversee a land deal. 

Before the tragedy happened, police confirmed that the Mondejars visited a zoo in Carmen town, located approximately 27 kilometers northwest of the highway where the collision occurred.

On the other hand, Gomez said Imer Betelguese, the lone survivor, had been transferred to a private hospital in Cebu City where physicians will be conducting further tests to determine his condition.

/bmjo

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