Remains of ABC-5 crew arrive in Manila

Amid heavy rains, the bodies of three ABC-5 news team members who died during a road mishap in Camarines Sur arrived earlier than expected Monday at the Villamor Air Base in Pasay City. Two Air Force helicopters which airlifted the remains of reporter Hazel Recheta-Calimag, cameraman Arnel Guiao and assistant cameraman Ismael Cabugayan landed at about 1:15 p.m. or 45 minutes earlier than their 2 p.m. expected arrival. Ed Lingao, news manager of ABC-5, accompanied the bodies from Camarines Sur to the military base. The remains were taken to La Funeraria Paz Funeral Homes in Quezon City at about 3:20 p.m. where family members, relatives and co-employees were waiting. Lingao earlier said the families of the three crew members would be asked if they want to continue interment rites at La Funeraria Paz or hold these at another venue of their choice. In a statement, the management of the Associated Broadcasting Corp. (ABC) said it "deeply mourn[ed] the tragic and untimely death" of Recheta and her news team. "Nobody wants to die, especially not in the prime of one's life, but if they had to die, Hazel, Arnel and Ismael would not have had it any other way than to die in pursuit of a story," said Terra Daffon, ABC-5 director for corporate affairs. She added, "Hazel devoted almost 11 years of her well-spent life as a reporter for ABC-5, sacrificing personal gain, comfort and safety to gather and deliver news in her strong, sober, no-nonsense way." "They were veterans with true grit, and bore the mark of the sturdy, Spartan, well-aimed news camera crew," Daffon said in the statement. Recheta, Guiao and Cabugayan died last Sunday after their Nissan Frontier pickup lost control while reportedly overtaking a bus in Pamplona town. Witnesses told local police investigators that the pickup zigzagged while it was overtaking the bus. Other residents reported hearing a loud explosion before the crash, but were unsure if this was the sound of a blown tire. The three were coming home to Manila after covering restive Mayon Volcano for nearly a week.-GMANews.TV Please see related story: Remains of ABC-5 crew airlifted to Manila ABC-5 statement on death of 3 news crew members (full text)