PACIANO RIZAL, Calamba City – The Calabarzon Office of Civil Defense (OCD) - Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC) here has reported around 11 fatalities during the Holy Week swimming jaunts in Laguna, Batangas and Quezon provinces.
OCD-RDRRMC Calabarzon Regional Director Olivia M. Luces disclosed to Philippine News Agency that as of Easter Sunday their office has recorded around 11 drowning victims from the swimming excursions with one in Victoria, Laguna; San Juan-2, Lobo-1, Tingloy-1, Nasugbu-1, Sto. Tomas-1 and Laurel-1 in Batangas province; and two in Real and one in Tayabas City in Quezon province.
Luces said that around 2 p.m. on Holy Wednesday, 13 year-old Carl Emmanuel Colico drowned at the Laguna Lake portion in Barangay Nanhaya, Victoria, Laguna after failing to swim ashore. Colico's companions reported the incident to the local disaster risk reduction and management offices in Victoria and Laguna.
Search and rescue responders, assisted by local fisher folks , scoured the lake water and recovered Colico’s body some two kilometers away from the swimming site at around 12:30 a.m. on Maundy Thursday.
Two drowning incidents were also reported in Real, Quezon on Maundy Thursday. One victim was Art Batallones Caballos, who was intoxicated with liquor when drowned in the Balagbag Area, Barangay Malapad.
Luces said that the local emergency team’s first responders rescued and applied CPR on Caballos and rushed him to the Claro M. Recto hospital but the victim was declared dead on arrival.
In Lubayat area also in Real, 27 year-old Michael Edward Kirk Rosell drowned due to exhaustion while trying to save a teenager from drowning. Real police, who were near in the area, tried to apply CPR on Rosell as he was rushed to the C.M. Recto Hospital but the victim was declared dead on arrival by the attending physician.
Also on Maundy Thursday, two drowning incidents were reported in Batangas where the lifeless body of Mariel Macalalad Nilo was found floating in the pool of Aguila Beach Resort in Barangay Nagsaulay, San Juan.The victim was rushed to San Juan Doctors Hospital for emergency treatment but was pronounced dead on arrival.
In Lobo, Batangas, Filipino-Australian Ralph Patrick Malbarosa Gangelberger also drowned while having a swimming excursion with his girlfriend in Barangay Olo-olo in this town. The victim was brought to Lobo Municipal Hospital but was declared dead on arrival. Four more swimming excursionists were reportedly drowned on Good Friday in Batangas
`Luces reported that Fernando Puyawan Villanueva went snorkeling at the shallow waters of the Masasa Beach in Barangay San Juan in Tingloy, Batangas when the victim had difficulty in breathing and fell unconscious.Tingloy rurual health unit (RHU) rescuers applied CPR for 30 minutes but the victim was later pronounced dead by the health authorities who were stationed at the beach area.
In the Green Terraces Resort in Barangay Calayo in Nasugbu, Eljohn Eragan drowned when he suffered an epilepsy attack while swimming at the resort. Lifeguards and Nasugbu MDRRMO immediately rushed the victim to the nearby Jabez hospital but Eragan expired later.
Ten year-old Kerby Comia Sanchez also drowned while swimming at the Avida Swimming Pool in Barangay San Antonio in Sto. Tomas, Batangas on Good Friday.
The teen victim was immediately brought to the Sto. Tomas General Hosptial but was declared dead on arrival by the attending doctor.
Also, 21 year-old Arvin Almendral was reportedly missing around 5:45 p.m. on Good Friday while swimming in Barangay Niogan in Laurel, Batangas. He was rescued by Laurel MDRRMO two hours later and taken to a neaby hospital but was declared dead on arrival.
On Black Saturday, the lifeless body of John Cristopher Paraggua Tejada was found floating at the water off Barangay Hugom in San Juan, Batangas by his common-law spouse. In Tayabas City, the father of drowning victim Erwin Garcillas has reported to the local DRRMO that his 17 year-old son Caster Troy Masongsong Garcillas drowned while swimming at the Villa Cecilia Resort in Barangay Malaoa also on Black Saturday.
Luces said that the OCD-RDRRMC Calabarzon is still on Blue Alert status until Tuesday (April 3) and is closely monitoring situation updates and incident reports in the region. (PNA)
