Remains of Filipina killed in Tai Po accident brought home

The Lees, Garcia and Laurel at the wake

By Daisy CL Mandap

For more than 20 years, Teresita Agina Hernandez had worked as a domestic worker in Hong Kong, and seemed to have liked it so much that even after all her four children had finished university, she decided to stay on.

But fate had other plans for her, for at exactly 6:56 on Oct. 29, Teresita, 55, was declared dead at Prince of Wales Hospital in Shatin, eight hours after she was hit by a private car on Ting Kok Road in Tai Po.



Teresita’s remains were brought home on Nov. 19, accompanied by her eldest and only daughter Marites Laurel, who had flown to Hong Kong from Ghana where she works as an accountant.

They were met at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila by Teresita’s three sons: Marlon, Marvin and Mark, as well as her estranged husband. From there they proceeded to their Mindoro hometown, where Teresita was buried on Saturday, Nov. 24.



According to Marites, Hong Kong police told her that they were still investigating the case. There were reportedly told that Teresita, who was hit at a pedestrian crossing, might have crossed while the traffic light was still red, but this has yet to be confirmed.

But whatever the cause of the accident, Teresita’s family was told they were entitled to compensation under the Traffic Accident Victims Assistance (TAVA) scheme, run by the Social Welfare Department.



They have also been advised by the Philippine Overseas Labor Office to apply for legal aid so they could pursue a separate claim against the insurers of the car that hit Teresita.

However, they could not apply for employee compensation, as this can be collected only from an employer if the worker had died due to an accident while at work, or due to a work-related illness.



As Teresita was killed on a Sunday, and on the street near her boarding house (and not at her workplace), her death could not be deemed as work-related.

Also, since she had been working for just over three years for her Korean employer, Lee Young-chun and his actress-wife Kathy, her family could not claim long service pay.



Despite this, the Lees had reportedly been extra generous to their helper’s family. They accommodated Marites at their Tai Kok Tsui home while she was preparing for the repatriation of her mother’s remains, and gave her an allowance plus financial help.

The couple also reportedly bought a white casket for Teresita at Marites’ request, and after the wake at Universal Funeral Parlor in Hunghom on Nov. 18, treated all the about 50 mourners to lunch.

Back in the Philippines, the family could claim a total of Php220,000 from the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration as payout for death caused by accident and funeral expenses.

Marites related that her mother had been working for just herself for the past several years, as she and her siblings had already finished their studies, and were all gainfully employed.

Apart from her, one of her brothers, Marlon, is also working abroad, as an engineer in Taiwan, making the family quite well off.

Their youngest, Mark, was the only one left at their home in Quezon City where Teresita would live while on holiday in the Philippines, as he was still single.

According to Teresita’s cousin Gemma Garcia, Teresita provided mostly for her brood while working abroad, but her husband, from whom she had separated in 2000, also pitched in.

From all accounts, it was a family that was just waiting for a beloved family member to come home for good, but tragedy intervened.

UPDATE: 2 Pinoys among 11 injured in school bus crash that killed 4

The fatal school bus leaves a trail of bodies, blood and debris.

UPDATE:

Two Filipinos, a 50-year-old man and a  43-year-old woman, were among those  injured in a freak traffic accident on King’s Road in North Point on Monday afternoon when a driverless school bus rolled downhill and mowed down 15 people, including its driver.

Four  people were killed.

A police spokesman said the two Filipinos were taken to hospital in a conscious state and were not in serious condition.

The officer, from the Police Public Relations Branch, could not provide other details such as the identities of the two victims. He said they are both Hong Kong ID card holders.

Earlier, four people, aged 70 to 83 and with Chinese names, were reported dead. A Filipino who lives nearby said the fatalities may be the people who manned the sidewalk stall that was crushed by the school bus on the corner of King's Road and Hei Wo St.

Consul Paulo Saret, head of the assistance to nationals section of the Consulate, said his office has been informed by the Hong Kong police that two Filipinos were among the injured.

“We were informed that both Filipinos, a 50-year-old male and a 43-year-old female, are in stable condition. One of them is in Ruttonjee Hospital and the other in Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital,” Saret said.

“We will relay the report to the Consul General tomorrow and request the OWWA to arrange a visit to the victims in those hospitals,” he added.

Based on OFWs' comments received by The SUN through its Facebook page, Filipino casualties could have been more if not for near misses.

The comments also illustrated the Filipino community's proximity to major events in Hong Kong.

“Buti na lang nakatawid na ako diyan bago nangyari. Kawawa naman yung mga namatayan at nadisgrasya,” recounted Mye Balsomo.

Cherry Dasalla, on the other hand, said she used to pass by that spot coming from the market, but had to meet a friend at another street corner when the accident happened. “Kaya na-shock ako nang tawagan ako ni Amo because she’s worried about the accident. God is good talaga,” Dasalla said.

Nhelz Canong Castillon posted the most detailed of these stories: "Jan ako bumibili ng tinapay balak ko dadaan doon bago magsundo sa school sa alaga ko...Ng akmang tatawid na ako papunta doon tumawag s ma'am na hintayin ko nlng sila sa north point mtr huwag daw ako bibili ng pangbreakfast for tomorrow kasi nakabili na siya. .. Pagbaba ko lng ng cp kasi lakad nlng ako Punta north point mtr mga Tao nagsisigawan na sa likod ko may mga tumatakbo at kumukuha ng video ... Grabi kaba ko call talaga n ma'am nagsave sa akin.. Nong nagkita na Kami sa mtr pinakita niya ang video sa akin at sabi niya thank you God my auntie is ok....
Hanggang dumating na kami sa bahay kinakabahan ako at s ma'am naman salita ng salita na kailangan mag ingat ako lalo na sa araw araw na paglalakad namin ng alaga ko."

Julie T. Dela Cruz declared: "Ito yung school bus ng alaga ko buti na lang hindi pa sila nakakalabas sa school kanina. So sad. Kawawa naman si mamang driver."

“Kita nga dito sa kwarto ko. Lagi kami diyan nababa,” said Yehlen Jayjoyce .

“Mabuti na lang di ako nag-market today dahil malamig sabi ng mga amo ko,” said Wenelyn Cabantac.

“Sana walang Pinay,” Rosalia Goloyugo wished.

Vermudo Florentine had a final advice: “Ingat sa mga nalabas ng bahay at pray lagi.”

7 Filipinos among 15 arrested in raid on illegal casino

The illegal casino was was operated in a unit at this block on King's Road.

Seven Filipinos are among 15 people being investigated by Hong Kong police after they were arrested in a raid on an illegal gambling den in North Point on Dec 7.

All 15 have been released on police bail. None has yet been charged, the Police Public Relations Branch told The SUN.

She said the raid was conducted by officers of the Special Duty Squad of the Eastern District Police on a flat at 351 King’s Road.

The officers arrested a 29-year-old local man suspected of operating the illegal casino. he PPRB spokeswoman did not identify the arrested people, but said they comprised 8 men and 7 women.

Aside from the 7 Filipinos, those nabbed were five locals, a Thai and a mainland Chinese man. The suspects are aged 23 to 59, the spokeswoman said.

The raiding team also seized 2 gaming machines, game cards and $3,000 in cash.

A local newspaper, quoting a police source, said the illegal casino was suspected to be run by a triad group.

The suspects were instructed to report back to the police in early January next year, the spokeswoman said.

Any type of gambling is illegal in this city although the government allows betting on horse racing, football and Mark Six lottery draws being held regularly by the Hong Kong Jockey Club to raise funds for charity.

Also exempted from the ban are services licensed by the Home Affairs Bureau such as mahjong parlors and social gambling.

Hong Kong’s Gambling Ordinance (Cap. 148) stipulates that all gambling activities including soliciting, receiving or settling of bets are illegal.

Hong Kong’s Gambling Ordinance (Cap. 148) stipulates that all gambling activities including soliciting, receiving or settling of bets are illegal.

Those who accept bets illegally are subject to a maximum penalty of $5 million and imprisonment of up to seven years. Those who participate in illegal gambling are subject to a maximum penalty of $30,000 and a prison term of up to nine months.

 

4 die, 12 others hurt as runaway school bus plows into pedestrians

Emergency crew at work. The SUN Photo.

A school bus that had just been parked by its driver rolled down Cheung Hong street in North Point this afternoon (Dec. 10), sped across King’s Road and plowed through 16 pedestrians, killing four of them, police said.

Media accounts of the accident indicated that none of those who died were Filipinos. The names of the fatalities, who were aged 70 to 83, were Chinese. It is not yet sure, however, if there were Filipinos among the 10 persons injured, eight of them seriously.

What used to be goods peddled on the corner litter the path left by the school bus.

Mimie Alma Barrientos, in a comment in The SUN’s Facebook post on the incident, said: “Nakita ko yan, yong mga nadisgrasya nagtitinda yan sa gilid.”

Emergency crew briefs the press.

One officer told The SUN that when the accident happened at around 1:45 pm, the bus had no one on board.

Its driver had just gotten off when the school bus rolled down the steep hillside road. He used his body to try to stop the bus, but was run over. 

Police, fire and ambulance service officers who came to the rescue of the victims could not immediately tell the nationalities of the casualties.

The sidewalk stall smashed by the school bus usually had Filipino buyers on any given day. But Joel Oronan of the Consulate’s assistance to nationals section said police could not yet tell by evening if there were Filipinos among the casualties. 

A dashboard video footage posted on several news pages showed the driver getting off the school bus on Cheung Hong St. while holding his phone, and ran in front to stop it when he noticed that it had moved downhill. He was knocked under the vehicle as the school bus sideswiped a taxi coming from Fort St. and then accelerated towards the junction with King’s Road. Watch a dashboard camera video of the incident: http://tv.on.cc/hk/index.html?i=OBK181210-14537-28-M&d=1544426910)

In a briefing, an investigator said the vehicle was parked about 50 meters on the left side of Cheung Hong St. when the vehicle rolled forward, mounted the pavement after hitting a taxicab, and was deflected back on to the street by the wall of a  restaurant and hit another taxicab. 

The runaway school bus then crossed King’s Road, mounted the left pavement of Hei Wo St. and plowed into several people and a sidewalk stall. Collision with the first building it hit deflected the bus, which then crashed into the entrance of a shop on the other side of the narrow street.

The shop next to that is AGL Mobile Express which caters to Filipino clients. Its owner, Simon Hui, said he heard a loud crash outside. When he checked, he saw the school bus in front of his front door.

He said police told them to stay inside while investigation was going on.

In its wake, the school bus left a trail of bodies, blood and crushed goods that were being sold earlier at the sidewalk stall it hit. Three persons were seen trapped under the bus.

As the crowd of onlookers grew, emergency crews arrived, and took the 14 casualties to waiting ambulances. By 3:15 pm, after the last of the victims had been evacuated, rescue personnel packed up their gear, leaving police investigators to determine what caused the accident. The swarm of uniformed personnel had also thinned. 

As the emergency unfolded, King’s Road and nearby streets were closed, and vehicles were rerouted to nearby streets.                                                                                                                                                                                                               

In the media briefing at 5pm, an investigator said the driver—who suffered serious injuries in the neck, head and other parts of the body – may have forgotten to deploy the handbrake, allowing the school bus to move.

Initial investigation on the vehicle showed the handbrake was not deployed properly. This, he said, would be the center of investigation to determine if the driver would be held criminally liable.

A woman, who looked and sounded like a Filipina OFW, was heard on video posted by Chinese news website hk.on.cc tearfully reporting to her employer. “I don’t know Ma’am,” she cried on the phone. But she did not appear injured. Watch: (https://tv.on.cc/hk/index.html?i=ONS181210-14495-32-M&d=1544435603)

OFWs' comments on two Facebook posts of The SUN, some recounting their experiences, illustrate the Filipino community's proximity to major events in Hong Kong.

“Buti na lang nakatawid na ako diyan bago nangyari. Kawawa naman yung mga namatayan at nadisgrasya,” recounted Mye Balsomo.

Cherry Dasalla, on the other hand, said she used to pass by that spot coming from the market, but had to meet a friend at another street corner when the accident happened. “Kaya na-shock ako nang tawagan ako ni Amo because she’s worried about the accident. God is good talaga,” Dasalla said.

Nhelz Canong Castillon posted the most detailed of these stories: "Jan ako bumibili ng tinapay balak ko dadaan doon bago magsundo sa school sa alaga ko...Ng akmang tatawid na ako papunta doon tumawag s ma'am na hintayin ko nlng sila sa north point mtr huwag daw ako bibili ng pangbreakfast for tomorrow kasi nakabili na siya. .. Pagbaba ko lng ng cp kasi lakad nlng ako Punta north point mtr mga Tao nagsisigawan na sa likod ko may mga tumatakbo at kumukuha ng video ... Grabi kaba ko call talaga n ma'am nagsave sa akin.. Nong nagkita na Kami sa mtr pinakita niya ang video sa akin at sabi niya thank you God my auntie is ok....
Hanggang dumating na kami sa bahay kinakabahan ako at s ma'am naman salita ng salita na kailangan mag ingat ako lalo na sa araw araw na paglalakad namin ng alaga ko."

Julie T. Dela Cruz declared: "Ito yung school bus ng alaga ko buti na lang hindi pa sila nakakalabas sa school kanina. So sad. Kawawa naman si mamang driver."

“Kita nga dito sa kwarto ko. Lagi kami diyan nababa,” said Yehlen Jayjoyce .

“Mabuti na lang di ako nag-market today dahil malamig sabi ng mga amo ko,” said Wenelyn Cabantac.

“Sana walang Pinay,” Rosalia Goloyugo wished.

Vermudo Florentine had a final advice: “Ingat sa mga nalabas ng bahay at pray lagi.”