Bus falls into La Union ravine, 38 hurt

At least 38 people were hurt after a bus bound for Pangasinan fell into a shallow ravine in La Union on Tuesday, police said. The Renevie Express bus reportedly fell into a ravine along the national highway in Barangay San Eugenio in Aringay town after its right front tire blew out at about 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle, Senior Superintendent Ramon Furuganan of the La Union Provincial Police said. “Pumutok daw ang gulong, so kumabig ‘yung sasakyan sa isang malalim-lalim na kanal. Ito’y lumusong at maraming nasugatan (They said there was a tire blowout, so the bus swerved into a rather deep gully. It dived in, and many got injured)," Furuganan said. The 38 injured passengers were immediately rushed to the La Union Medical Center for treatment, according to the provincial police chief. He added that the bus driver, identified as Robert Balmana, fled after incident and is currently being pursued by local police. “Ang naging problema natin is ‘yung driver. Mukhang nakatakas. Mukhang natakot siguro… Ngayon hinahanap ng kapulisan natin dito (The driver is our problem now. It seems he fled. He might have feared for himself… Our local police is now looking for him)," he said. Furuganan said police will coordinate with the operators of the bus to track down the driver. Last March, another passenger bus slammed into an acacia tree along Marcos Highway in Pugo town, also in La Union, causing the death of at least 12 people. (See: Death toll in La Union bus accident now 12)—Andreo C. Calonzo/JV, GMANews.TV