RTMI addresses road mishap that killed 5 in Misor

FOLLOWING the road accident that had five persons killed in Gitagum town, Misamis Oriental recently, the management of a bus company has assured that it is taking measures to ensure the safety of its passengers.

“We would like to guarantee the riding public that we are taking all the appropriate steps to ensure that your safety and comfort is always our top-most priority,” said the Rural Transit Mindanao Inc. (RTMI) in a statement.

According to the Gitagum municipal police, the road crash involved an RTMI bus and a truck loaded with fish from Zamboanga City on March 30.

In a statement released to the press on March 31, RTMI said the six-wheeler fish carrier, “from the opposite direction swerved left on a curve road, encroached on our lane, and collided head-on against our bus.”

“This incident has been recorded in the bus’ CCTV, where it showed that our driver was not at fault,” the RTMI said.

This collision caused major damage to both vehicles and injuries to five people, including the conductor, who was brought to Iligan City Hospital, Northern Mindanao Medical Center, and Polymedic Hospital for treatment, the company said.

“RTMI would like to extend our deepest and most heartfelt condolences to the families of the five deceased, one of which was the driver of our bus, the driver of the six-wheeler truck, and the three who are passengers of our bus. The management is making sure that all the needs of the passengers and driver of our bus who were injured and deceased are taken care of while the owner of the six-wheeler fish carrier is being contacted,” it added.

“The management would also like to express our most heartfelt apologies for those involved in the incident and to assure everyone that we are doing everything that we can to ensure that this is being handled properly and carefully,” RTMI said.

For its part, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board-10 (LTFRB-10) issued a show-cause order to the RTMI management last Friday.

Aminoden Guro, LTFRB-10 regional director, confirmed on Saturday that they already have issued RTMI the show-cause order.

The order, signed by lawyer Mohamad Fahdel Pimping, LTFRB-10 regional hearing officer, has required the RTMI to appear before the LTFRB-10 office on April 11 to formally present to the agency its own account of the accident.