‘LIMIT LIQUOR, STREET PARTIES’

AFTER PARTY. The night was long and hard for those who joined the post-Sinulog street parties, especially teenagers who let it all hang out in Mango Avenue. (CDN PHOTO/CHRISTIAN MANINGO)

Police chief, Cebu city officials see need for stricter rules for Sinulog revelry

Less liquor, fewer street parties.

This was the suggestion of Senior Supt. Marciano Batiancela Jr., commander of the Sinulog Security task group, in the wake of Sunday’s post-Sinulog parade revelry which turned rowdy after nightfall in uptown Cebu City.

Vehicles were stalled on the road, unable to get through the thick crowds after the parade ended.

People were dancing and carousing until 3 a.m.

Batiancela, however, joined Cebu City and police officials in refuting initial reports of a stampede along General Maxilom Avenue (Mango Avenue)and Juana Osmeña Streets.

Batiancela said there were just too many people in one place.

“There was no stampede. I went there at around 10 p.m,” he said.

Cebu City Councilor Dave Tumulak said revelers filled the streets and prevented motorists from entering uptown Cebu City.

“The street was just overfilled with people, mostly drunk youngsters,” said Tumulak, who heads the Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

In yesterday’s press briefing, Chief Insp. David Señor, head of operations of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO), said they didn’t receive any reports of a stampede.

“Last Sunday evening’s celebration could not be called a stampede. The revelers only sustained minor injuries. They only fell as they strolled along the area which they know was congested,” he said.

Tumulak , meanwhile, said he was in the area near National Bookstore and saw for himself that the area was filled “with people who were just dancing and jumping” between 8 p.m. last Sunday and 3 a.m. yesterday.

He confirmed that City Hall’s Emergency Response Service (ERS) responded to 244 medical-related emergencies from 6 p.m. Sunday to 6 a.m. yesterday.

There were 19 cases of people having difficulty breathing, eight people suffering from dizziness and 126 people losing consciousness. Most of them were brought to the hospital.

They also recorded 24 vehicular accidents and 74 medical cases and trauma. Most of the cases were caused by exhaustion during the Sinulog celebration, he said.

They included dancers and spectators as well as people who got drunk. Tumulak said many revelers got rowdy and damaged vehicles.

“Ilang gihugaw-hugawan ang (They vandalized the) ambulances. They pounded on the vehicles, denting them. Three of our ambulances were damaged,” Tumulak said.

Carlo Borromeo, who lives nearby in Ramon Aboitiz St. across the Tree House which holds a street party every Sinulog, said he was mauled in front of his house by five unidentified men at past 9 p.m. last Sunday.

“My wife and I drove out with plans to go to a friend’s birthday party at a restaurant. As we left our driveway, people began banging on the car. I stepped out and yelled at them to stop. The next thing I knew, I had a bleeding nose and a black eye,” he told Cebu Daily News.

Borromeo said he has yet to report the incident to the police. He took photos of drunken youth revelers in last year’s Sinulog and posted them online.

Borromeo said what happened to him should serve as a warning about inadequate security on the streets after the Sinulog parade, which ended with a grande finale and fireworks past 7 p.m.

Jonnah Mahinay, a frequent Sinulog reveler, said this year’s celebration was the wildest so far.

“Outside the hotel, someone fainted. She was put on top of a parked vehicle for medical attention. Unlike the past years, the crowd was very unruly this year. A kid was even crying wehn he got stuck in the middle of dancing revelers,” she said.

Tumulak said at least 30 people were reported missing, mostly aged one to 10 years old, from 6 a.m. last Sunday to 6 a.m. yesterday.

“Most of them are not from Cebu City,” he said.

Batiancela said two vehicles were trapped in the center of a road. The cars had to be pulled out to allow people to pass through.

He said while some businesses were not holding street parties, they installed sound systems that drew revelers who sang and danced on the streets.

Batiancela said these establishments could help reduce congestion by not serving alcohol to drunken revelers.

“There should be a limit,” he said. Not all were unruly though and they even listened to the police, he said. “They even greeted us ‘Pit Senyor, sir,’” he said.

A total of 2,600 police personnel secured the event during the Sinulog Grand Parade and 1,000 policemen were fielded in several places after the program at the sports center.

Tumulak said motorists coming from downtown and the south were unable to enter Fuente Osmeña rotunda due to the sheer mass of revelers. Compared to last year, though, Tumulaks said crowd control was better this year.

“I really appreciate the other store owners and bar owners since I saw more security. There were bouncers maintaining peace and order. I also saw medical teams and they installed CCTVs,” he said.

He said the streets were also well lighted and there were police personnel scattered in the area. To avoid the inconvenience of getting caught in a street party, , Tumulak advised the public to avoid crowded streets during future Sinulog celebrations.

“The people who go in those places, want to go there. If you don’t want to get hurt, avoid the area, don’t go there. It’s their choice,” he said.