A man died after he was hit by a falling telephone pole while driving a motorcycle in a freak accident along a national road in Dagohoy town on Wednesday morning.
Senior Master Sgt. Marlon Candia of the Dagohoy Police Station said Nestor Laurden, 41, was crushed by a PLDT pole which fell to its side after a Southern Star Bus Transit, Inc. bus hit wires connected to the post.
“Nasabud sa Ceres [bus] ning wire sa poste. Nasangit sa bus ang wire, na-timingan na pagtumba sa poste nadat-ugan ang motor naigo gyud iyang lawas,” said Candia.
The bus driven by one Randy Baculot was heading towards Tagbilaran City while Laurden was travelling to the opposite direction during the incident.
Authorities believed that continued rains prior to the accident may have also caused the soil in which the pole was erected to soften.
“Basin tungod aning uwan maong nihumok, grabeng uwan man gud pud gabii,” said Candia.
Local government unit rescuers were deployed to the area and rushed Laurden to a nearby hospital.
However, Laurden was declared dead on arrival due to severe injuries sustained including a broken spinal column.
According to the police officer, Baculot and Laurden’s family reached an amicable settlement following the incident.
The SBTI also vowed to extend financial assistance to the victim’s family. (A. Doydora)