Death toll in gas blast climbs to 50

The death toll from Friday’s chemical tanker truck explosion in Zamboanga del Sur has climbed to 50, while the number of wounded persons rose to 41, Senior Superintendent Ramon Ochotorena told GMANews.TV, Saturday. He said 30 of the 50 bodies that included a military corporal, a fireman and a four-month old baby, have already been identified. The police have yet identified the chemical carried by the truck (JVC-974). Ochotorena said the truck crew man who survived the mishap said the vehicle carrying carbon dioxide was on its way to a Coca-Cola Bottling plant in the area. Many of the victims are believed to be bus passengers who had stopped to help when the truck fell off the road just before the explosion at Tigbao, Zamboanga del Sur. The blast happened at about 10:30 a.m. Friday along the national highway of Zamboanga del Sur province, about 20 kms away from Pagadian City. The truck lost its brakes as it was moving downhill at a mountain area of Tigbao town. It crashed, leaving compressed carbon dioxide gas tanks scattered on the highway. Passengers of a passing RS Transit Bus (plate JVC-775) stopped by to help, but eventually suffered the brunt of the explosion some 20 minutes later.-GMANews.TV