Sambag II residents find human foot under bridge

CEBU - Residents of B. Rodriguez St. in barangay Sambag II were stirred yesterday afternoon after the discovery of a human foot under the bridge.

The people suspect that the foot came from a hospital as it was well-wrapped and had bandages around it.

They believe that it belongs to a diabetic, but was improperly discarded, which is the reason why it was discovered under the bridge.

The right foot was wrapped in a plastic bag and put inside a box. It was found by Arnel Cabanlit, who immediately informed barangay tanod Felix Bacatan.

“Presko kaayo ang mga dugo. Murag bag-o pang gilabay. Posibling gikan to sa mga hospital tungod kay dunay daghang binda ang maong tiil, murag nasakit sa diabetes ba niya giputol,” said Bacatan.

The said foot was turned over to the Cebu City Police Office, which also immediately sent it to the San Fernando Funeral Homes.

“Dili ko maka-ingon nga sa Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center ang tiil pero wala tay madudahan kay sila ramay duol nga hospital dinhi. Dako sab posiblidad nga nanugo silag taw sa pagpalubong niini apan gikapoy ug gilbay nalang sa taytayan,” Bacatan added.

SPO1 Roger Ledamo of Homicide Section of Cebu City Police Office also suspected that the said foot came from a hospital.

“Nagtuo jud ko nga gikan ni sa hospital og doctor ang nagputol ani kay maayo man kaayo ning pagkaputol pero ambot lang ug unsang hospitala.”

This discovery follows the finding of other parts of the human body by scavengers at the Inayawan Sanitary Landfill a couple of months ago.

In that incident, the Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC) admitted that the body parts came from its patients.

Eleodoro ‘Nonoy’ Mongaya, Jr. of the Don Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center said that it is their policy that body parts would be properly disposed.

He said that after amputation, the severed part is given to the family for disposal.

He added that the hospital will do an investigation just to check if that foot came from one of their patients.

Mongaya also pointed out that they may be the closest to where the foot was found, but the DVSMMC is not the only hospital in the city as he asked the authorities not to make any hasty conclusion. —Christopher Gabriel Bonjoc/NLQ (THE FREEMAN)