A delivery van driver who reportedly fell asleep at the wheel plowed into a group of people along a highway Monday, killing three and injuring two others in Barangay Santa Ana, Taytay, Rizal, local authorities said.
Closed-circuit television footage showed the van traveling at high speed along the C6 Road before jumping a gutter and crashing into a roadside area near a junk shop. The impact destroyed a house and two adjacent stores.
According to Taytay Police investigator Cpl. Mackenray Villarazo, four of the victims were on the gutter dismantling items for sale at the junk shop when they were struck.
A fifth victim managed to avoid the direct path of the vehicle after seeing it approaching at high speed.
“When our ambulance arrived, they saw two men lying beside C6. Two other men were pinned under the van; they were already lifeless and bloodied,” said Eva Regis, an ambulance controller for Barangay Santa Ana.
One of the deceased victims was a young man described by his uncle, Jovito Fernandez, as the primary provider for his siblings. Fernandez said his nephew was sitting in the area and was dragged by the vehicle during the crash.
Police investigators said the van was traveling from Quezon City to deliver goods to a grocery store in Taytay when the driver lost control.
“Based on his statement, he fell asleep. He lost control and ran over the side of the road and the gutter,” Villarazo said.
The 41-year-old driver, whose identity was not immediately released, is currently held at the Taytay Police custodial facility.
He faces charges of reckless imprudence resulting in multiple homicide and damage to property.
The driver declined to provide further details to the media but issued a brief apology to the victims’ families.
His helper was unharmed in the incident, while two injured survivors remain in the hospital undergoing treatment for various wounds.
