CITY OF SAN FERNANDO—The chief of police in Capas, Tarlac has cleared public and private agencies as well as local officials and tour operators of criminal liabilities in the death of three foreign tourists and two Filipinos who drowned in a flashflood at the foot of Mt. Pinatubo during the height of Typhoon Kiko last Aug. 6.
“The incident is purely an act of nature, unforeseen and unpredictable, therefore no agency or anybody should be blamed or made accountable,” Supt. Joyce Patrick Sangalang said in an Aug. 11 memorandum that summed up the findings of the probe conducted by the police.
“…All precautionary measures were taken into consideration by all concerned agencies,” Sangalang added, referring to the registration of the two batches of Korean, French and Belgian tourists—12 in all— at the visitors’ center of the Pull Travel Destination Corp. (PDC) in Barangay Sta. Juliana and their hiring of guides from there.
Citing interviews with the survivors, Sangalang said they went up when the weather was sunny and rushed down less than hour later when strong rains hit the area.
He did not state in the report if the guide, Fernando Ordonio, 39 and a resident in the village, had advised otherwise.
Ordonio died in the flashflood together with Martine Cholet, 53, and Thierry Caillot, 49, who were both French nationals; and Walter Adrien Steylemans, 48 and a Belgian. A village watchman, Frederick Reyla, died during the rescue operations.
Sangalang mentioned that the group met a landslide as their vehicle descended while two vehicles got stuck in the river down the Skyway, a shorter route carved by the local government to the volcano.
Ronaldo Tiotuico, director of the Department of Tourism in Central Luzon, had raised concern for the safety of the Skyway because it was built without an environmental clearance certificate.
Mayor Reynaldo Catacutan said the route was made with lots of consideration for safe travel.
While the report was heavy with details of a coordinated and well-planned rescue and retrieval operations by the military, police and Catacutan, Sangalang did not say why the tourists registered with the PDC and hired guides there instead of doing these at the Sta. Juliana Tourism Council. The guides there had been trained by the DOT in mountain survival and trek adventure.
The investigation also established that the tourists hired drivers and vehicles in Angeles City and not in Sta. Juliana where the drivers are more familiar with the terrain and weather.
Sangalang recommended training in basic survival, search and rescue to all drivers and guides, and provisions of survival kits, first aid items and meals to them during treks.
He instructed the PDC to coordinate with the weather bureau for accurate forecast, set up a single command post for search and rescue and install an information board that will advise trekkers on whether it safe to go or not.
“The incident is purely an act of nature, unforeseen and unpredictable, therefore no agency or anybody should be blamed or made accountable,” Supt. Joyce Patrick Sangalang said in an Aug. 11 memorandum that summed up the findings of the probe conducted by the police.
“…All precautionary measures were taken into consideration by all concerned agencies,” Sangalang added, referring to the registration of the two batches of Korean, French and Belgian tourists—12 in all— at the visitors’ center of the Pull Travel Destination Corp. (PDC) in Barangay Sta. Juliana and their hiring of guides from there.
Citing interviews with the survivors, Sangalang said they went up when the weather was sunny and rushed down less than hour later when strong rains hit the area.
He did not state in the report if the guide, Fernando Ordonio, 39 and a resident in the village, had advised otherwise.
Ordonio died in the flashflood together with Martine Cholet, 53, and Thierry Caillot, 49, who were both French nationals; and Walter Adrien Steylemans, 48 and a Belgian. A village watchman, Frederick Reyla, died during the rescue operations.
Sangalang mentioned that the group met a landslide as their vehicle descended while two vehicles got stuck in the river down the Skyway, a shorter route carved by the local government to the volcano.
Ronaldo Tiotuico, director of the Department of Tourism in Central Luzon, had raised concern for the safety of the Skyway because it was built without an environmental clearance certificate.
Mayor Reynaldo Catacutan said the route was made with lots of consideration for safe travel.
While the report was heavy with details of a coordinated and well-planned rescue and retrieval operations by the military, police and Catacutan, Sangalang did not say why the tourists registered with the PDC and hired guides there instead of doing these at the Sta. Juliana Tourism Council. The guides there had been trained by the DOT in mountain survival and trek adventure.
The investigation also established that the tourists hired drivers and vehicles in Angeles City and not in Sta. Juliana where the drivers are more familiar with the terrain and weather.
Sangalang recommended training in basic survival, search and rescue to all drivers and guides, and provisions of survival kits, first aid items and meals to them during treks.
He instructed the PDC to coordinate with the weather bureau for accurate forecast, set up a single command post for search and rescue and install an information board that will advise trekkers on whether it safe to go or not.
