76 deaths due to drowning, vehicular accidents recorded during Holy Week —PNP

A total of 72 deaths due to drowning and four due to vehicular accidents were recorded nationwide during the Holy Week, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said Monday.

At a televised public briefing, PNP spokesperson Police Colonel Jean Fajardo said the 72 death toll due to drowning  was as of 6 p.m. on Easter Sunday.

Most of the drowning incidents were reported in three regions -- Calabarzon with 19, Ilocos with 14, and Central Luzon with 10.

Of the 72 fatalities, 23 were minors aged three to 17 and three were senior citizens, according to Fajardo.

In a statement, PNP chief Police General Rodolfo Azurin Jr. advised the public to watch over their children during family outings.

"To all parents,  please do not leave your children unattended and avoid drinking liquors while swimming to avoid cases of drowning,” he said.

Meanwhile, in a statement, the PNP said it recorded close to a dozen vehicular accidents during the Holy Week with four deaths.

Azurin said the deployment of personnel will focus now on bus terminals, seaports, and airports as activities and movement of the traveling public will be more in these areas.

The PNP said the observance of the Holy Week this year was “generally peaceful and orderly,” attributing it to the strict implementation of its nationwide-coordinated police operations Oplan Ligtas Sumvac 2023.

It also noted a decrease in crime rate for eight focus crimes by 14.69% compared to last year’s record from January 1 to April 8.

“However, the crime environment still showed a significant change as the 8 focus crimes decreased by 14.69% from 10,954 incidents in 2022 (January 1 to April 8) to 9,345 incidents in 2023 for the same period,” the PNP said. —Joviland Rita/KG/KBK, GMA Integrated News