MANILA, Philippines - Four men and a woman were killed at the southbound lane of EDSA-Magallanes bus loading bay in Makati City after a bus rear-ended another bus Thursday morning.
Alvin Pescador of the Metrobase of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said the victims were alighting from the Alabang-bound MGB Transport bus (NXV-360) at about 6:41 am. when it was violently rear-ended by the Baclaran bound Elena Lines bus (TXN-191).
One of the victims was sandwiched between the buses, Pescador said.
The four dead men were identified by the Makati Rescue as Lamberto Singular, Osias Mata Jr., SPO1 Laurence Blay Navaro and Fernando Sison. The woman has no identification document on her, the Makati Rescue said.
The fatalities were taken to the Veronica Funeral Homes in Pasay City,
About 31 others, including Antonio Dalag, driver of the Elena bus, were hurt. Responding emergency units from the Makati Rescue and the MMDA rushed the injured to the Ospital ng Makati and the Makati Medical Center.
Those injured sustained minor abrasions, fractures and lacerations, the Makati Rescue said.
The MMDA said that the smashup caused a massive traffic jam that slowed southbound traffic along EDSA from Cubao to Magallanes.
The two buses were removed from the Magallanes loading bay at 9:22 a.m.
Pescador said the incident was not captured by the MMDA's closed-circuit television camera mounted on the Magallanes interchange as its view was blocked by the Magallanes Metrorail Transit (MRT) terminal.
The Makati Traffic Police is now probing the incident.