1 dead, 2 injured in C5 multi-vehicle collision

MANILA, Philippines — A dump truck jumped into the opposite lane of C5 Road in Taguig on Thursday night, smashing into an Innova and hitting two sport utility vehicles  and a motorcycle before landing in a ditch.

The driver of the Innova was crushed to death in the vehicle. It took nearly eight hours for his body to be pried out of the wreckage, which was crushed against the highway railings and nearby trees.

Two others were injured and rushed to nearby hospitals.

Police probers said the truck driver appeared to be speeding but was not drunk. Now in the custody of the Taguig Traffic Bureau, he told TV5 that he lost control of the truck. He suffered minor injuries.

The dump truck was headed northbound when it jumped into the southbound lane and collided with incoming traffic past 8 p.m. in Barangay Pinagsama.

Workers needed heavy equipment, including a crane and boom truck, to extract the body of the Innova driver. The incident caused massive traffic on C5 that lasted several hours.

In an interview, assistant barangay administrator Vince Lopez said the driver attempted to flee the scene after the accident.

“When the truck stopped after the collision, the driver got out and walked toward the road, seemingly in shock and possibly trying to escape. Our barangay tanod and bystanders chased after him,” Lopez said.

Authorities are currently investigating to determine the cause of the accident.