The body of Rhesamie Ypil Costan, 26, who was six months pregnant, was found by fishermen off the waters of Barangay Luyang in Carmen town, northern Cebu a day after their pickup truck loaded with 17 passengers was swept by flashfloods. | Paul Lauro
CEBU CITY, Philippines – The death toll in the Carmen tragedy that struck a family on Monday afternoon, has climbed to three.
This after disaster and rescue personnel recovered two more bodies on Tuesday bringing to three the number of fatalities of the ill-fated pickup truck that was swept away by flash floods last Monday, July 8.
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The newly found bodies were those of Rhesamie Ypil Costan, 26, and 12-year-old Nathaniel Lozano. .
Fisherfolks from the Luyang Fishermen Association who joined in the search and rescue operations on Tuesday, July 9 found Costan’s corpse floating along the coasts of Brgy. Luyang, also in Carmen town.
Authorities confirmed that Costan was six-months pregnant, and that she just wed her husband, Elmer Costan, the weekend prior to the Carmen tragedy.
Elmer was also one of those who got swept away by the strong current of the river, and remained missing as of this writing.
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The Costans were among the passengers of the Isuzu Dmax pick up truck that got hit by flashfloods while traveling downhill from the mountain barangays of Carmen last Monday.
It was initially reported that the vehicle tried to cross the spillway of the river during Monday’s downpour.
But it was later found out that the pick-up truck swerved to the riverbanks when the river swelled and overflowed to the nearby roads.
As a result, the driver reportedly lost direction of the concrete road and unaware that the vehicle already encroached the banks before it was suddenly hit by a huge volume of flood water.
Of the 17 passengers of the Carmen tragedy, 10 were rescued.
Search and rescue operations continue for the five remaining passengers, including Costan’s husband and four minors.