Edwin Sevidal, ABS-CBN's well-respected #RP37, passes away

MANILA, Philippines — Veteran ABS-CBN radio reporter and current head for radio news gathering Edwin Sevidal has passed away after contracting the novel coronavirus. He was 49.

ABS-CBN announced on Friday his passing in a statement, remembering Sevidal for his contributions to the network and its news and current affairs team. 

"As the head of ABS-CBN's Radyo Patrol, he pushed for the use of mobile journalism among radio reporters, which enabled them to deliver reports for both radio, television and online platforms without the need for bulky equipment and additional manpower," the network said.

"After pioneering mobile video journalism (MoJo) in DZMM Teleradyo, Sevidal also conducted mobile journalism workshops for ABS-CBN News correspondents in the Europe and Middle East bureaus. In 2019, he set up the ABS-CBN News Asia-Pacific bureau, recruiting and training correspondents from all over the region," it added.

Media workers, who continue to deliver news amid the pandemic, have been included in the A4 category on the government’s vaccination priority list, along with other frontliners in essential sectors.

#RP37

According to Sevidal’s LinkedIn profile, he had been with ABS-CBN Corp. for 26 years, where he started as a production assistant for flagship DZMM Radyo Patrol, then rose to becoming a researcher, executive producer, and eventually one of the network’s field reporters.

He later became a desk editor.

In March 2015, he became the manager of Radyo Patrol reporters of DZMM Teleradyo under the network’s Integrated News and Current Affairs Division.

But long before Sevidal became the beloved boss of ABS-CBN reporters, Sevidal had to earn his call sign Radyo Patrol 37, or RP37, first.

A blog run by fellow ABS-CBN reporter Anjo Bagaoisan, said once Radyo Patrol reporters earn this call sign, “it’s theirs for life.”

In their posts for Sevidal, fellow journalists referenced his call sign, a tribute to the long-time reporter with the #RP37 tag.

This is going to be numbing for a long while. Paalam, Edwin Sevidal. You were a steady, silent force in the newsroom. RIP #RP37 .

— Karmina Constantino (@ConstantKC) April 22, 2021

Salamat, saludo at paalam, boss Edwin Sevidal. RIP #RP37

— Ron Cruz (@donronX) April 22, 2021

Hanggang sa muli, #RP37 ????????????

— Biena Magbitang ♥????????? (@bienamichelle) April 22, 2021

???? #RP37

— Chiara Zambrano (@chiarazambrano) April 22, 2021

Covering Mindanao

In his long career in journalism, Sevidal covered the Ampatuan Massacre in 2009 and the search for then-Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo, who died in a plane accident off Masbate in 2012.

He also provided coverage of the onslaught of two of the strongest and deadliest storms to hit Mindanao: Tropical Storm Sendong, which hit Mindanao badly, in December 2011 and Typhoon Pablo in November 2012.

When terrorist groups besieged Marawi City in 2017, Sevidal was also there to report. On his Twitter account, the newsman shared videos of state forces patrolling the city and how, on some mornings, explosions broke the silence of the city.

He last posted on his Twitter account in November 2020. His account showed videos taken while on the road, showing flooded areas, long lines for government aid, street disinfection, and even a bike lane set up in Mandaluyong City since the pandemic—even as a boss of reporters, Sevidal did not forget to document incidents that could help the public learn.

On his Twitter account, Sevidal described himself as a “tsismosong kapamilya, asong gala, manyu-nyut, tatay, pumuputok, mananakbo, nagpipidal, maninisid.”

Rest in power, #RP37.