Police examine the scene where a man and his pregnant live-in partner were found after they allegedly figured in an accident in Barangay Corte, Carmen, northern Cebu on Monday evening, September 11, 2023. | Contributed photo via Paul Lauro
CEBU CITY, Philippines — A pregnant woman and her unborn baby died after the motorcycle she was riding with her live-in partner figured in an accident along the provincial road in Barangay Corte, Carmen, northern Cebu on Monday evening, September 11, 2023.
The vehicular incident that claimed the lives of the mother and her unborn child took place at around 7:26 p.m., according to the police report.
Police, in the report, identified the woman as 36-year-old Nelia Tacocong, pregnant.
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The driver of the motorcycle was identified as Dennis Badatos, of legal age, and the live-in partner of the deceased victim.
The couple resides in Barangay Poblacion Carmen, Cebu.
Police said both victims were immediately brought to the Provincial Hospital in Danao City for medical treatment. However, the pregnant backrider was pronounced dead on arrival by the attending physician.
Police Staff Master Sergeant Edmund Sumalinog, responding investigator from the Carmen Police Station, told CDN Digital in a phone interview, that based on the assessment of the doctor at the hospital, the woman was either 8 or 9 months pregnant.
He added that the couple was on their way home from an upper area in the barangay to retrieve money when the accident happened.
Sumalinog also said that based on their investigation, the motorcycle’s brakes could have malfunctioned as they were passing a curve which caused the couple to fall off the side of the road.
Neither victim was wearing a helmet when the respondents found them unconscious at the scene of the incident, according to Sumalinog.
Sumalinog added that despite the efforts of the doctors to save the unborn baby, the child reportedly died as well at around 12:00 a.m. on Tuesday, September 12.
Meanwhile, the driver is still at the hospital recovering from injuries on his leg.
/bmjo