Man walks on Manila road due to obstructed sidewalk, gets hit by speeding car

A 29-year-old man who was walking along the road in Manila due to an obstructed sidewalk was hit by a speeding vehicle over the weekend.

According to Mark Salazar’s “24 Oras” report on Wednesday, Romer Villas and a companion were walking along Onyx Street in Barangay 775 at midnight on Sunday when he was hit by a speeding SUV.

The two men were nearly in the middle of the road as they were walking since the sidewalk was obstructed by parked tricycles, among other things.

An SUV suddenly whizzed by, throwing the victim several meters away from where he was walking.

Barangay 775 chairman Allan Pacheco, the victim’s uncle, said Villas was recovering in a hospital.

“Sa ngayon po, nakakausap na siya. ‘Yun nga lang po, siyempre inoobserbahan po siya dahil ang tama po ay sa atay yata ‘yun kasi mukhang ‘yun na ata ang ooperahan, saka sa ulo,” Pacheco said.

“Hindi naman ho siguro sa ano ng tricycle kasi mabilis [ang takbo],” he added.

GMA News has sought the SUV driver for comment. The two parties earlier came to an agreement.

Despite the incident, however, the sidewalks on Onyx Street remained obstructed by residents’ vehicles and vendors.

Pedestrians could be seen walking along the road, right beside cars passing by the area.

“‘Yung iba po minsan matigas talaga ang ulo, kaya minsan tinatawag namin ang MTPB (Manila Traffic and Parking Bureau),” Pacheco said.

“E nakita niyo naman po sa TV, talagang nakikipag-away pa ‘yung mga kini-clear natin. Kung sa kanila nga po nakikipag-away, lalo na po kami dito sa barangay.”

The barangay chairman said he did not have enough staff to conduct road clearing operations.

“‘Pag inano po namin, sabihin nila, e ano naman po ang ibibigay niyo sa amin lalo’t yun lang din ang hanapbuhay nila? Junk shop nga po saka tricycle driver ‘yung mga trabaho dito,” Pacheco said.

The Interior Department earlier extended the deadline for road clearing operations to February 15. —Julia Mari Ornedo/LDF, GMA News