12 injured as PUV crashes; driver swears he saw dancing ghosts

By Freddie G. Lazaro

CAMP DIEGO SILANG, La Union -- A dozen people were injured when the commuter Asian utility vehicle they were in plunged into a 7-meter deep ravine in Santol, this province last Monday.

Police reported Tuesday that the driver of the public utility vehicle, with license plates ACP-546, lost control of the wheel while engaging a sharp curve in SitioBalayUdang, Barangay Ramut, Santol.

Of the 12 victims, only one was declared in critical condition at the Ilocos Training and Regional Medical Center in San Fernando City, La Union.

She was identified in hospital records as Mindao Sadao, 27, of Barangay Tubaday, Santol, La Union, who is eight months pregnant.

The AUV driver Rolando Sadao, 33, of Barangay Tubaday, Santol, swore he saw “ghosts” of ladies dancing in the middle of the road.

He said they were the reason why he veered off course and off the cliff.

Police said the section of the road where Sadao lost control of the AUV is tricky for drivers, being a narrow, downslope path leading to a curve.