An accident along the highway in Barangay Gaas, Balamban, Cebu on Thursday, March 21, lead to the death of a nursing student while 10 others were injured. | Screenshot from contributed video via Paul Lauro
CEBU CITY, Philippines — A nursing student died after the sport utility vehicle she was driving with 10 of her classmates onboard, flipped over while she tried to evade another vehicle in Barangay Gaas, Balamban town in western Cebu on Thursday afternoon, March 21, 2024.
The road accident happened at around 5:30 p.m. along the Transcentral Highway and was reported to authorities at around 6:40 p.m.
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The driver of the sport-utility vehicle (SUV) was identified as Angelu Mae Omayao Pateres, of legal age, a resident of Anyhow Valley in Barangay Buhisan, Cebu City.
The passengers, who were her classmates, were identified as: Kent Abrolodura, Kirby Tahanlangit, John Kenneth Araneta, RJ Colanggo, Michael Mongaya, Dinah Maluloy-on, Gwen Lano, Kim Rocaberte, Gwenyth Elevaso, and Julius Aping.
The involved individuals are reportedly nursing students in the same class in one of the universities in Cebu City.
CCTV footage
A police report revealed that Pateres’ SUV was traveling downhill very fast in a “west to east direction” along the highway at the time of the incident.
Before the accident, the individuals were captured in a closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage entering the vehicle while leaving a restaurant.
Upon reaching a curve portion of the road in the barangay, they reportedly met another vehicle ahead which prompted Pateres to attempt to evade it.
However, she allegedly lost control of the SUV in the process of evading the other vehicle, which resulted in the SUV turning upside down in the middle of the road.
The SUV was damaged due to the impact of the crash.
When emergency personnel arrived at the scene, the students were brought to the Balamban Provincial Hospital for immediate medical treatment.
Pateres, however, was declared dead on arrival by the attending physician due to the seriousness of her head injuries.
Meanwhile, the 10 other students sustained injuries on the different parts of their bodies and are being treated at the hospital.
In an interview with CDN Digital, Anastacio Pateres, the driver’s father, shared that his daughter had been driving for a long time and was with her classmates at the time of the accident.
A video captured by one of the passengers of the SUV showed what happened minutes before the accident and their screams were heard as the vehicle turned upside down.
As of this writing, Pateres’ dead body has reportedly been transferred to a funeral home in the province.