Sunday, December 02, 2007 Peers mourn loss of nature lover
CEBU lost a champion for the environment in 39-year-old ophthalmologist Adolph Espina II, whose friends gathered at the St. Francis Memorial Homes yesterday to pay their last respects.
Espina fractured his skull and broke his ribs and legs in a caving accident Friday.
Regional Trial Court Judge Meinrado Paredes and Geospecus members Jojo Abella and Ryan and Ivy Dy witnessed Espina’s autopsy.
“He had this indefatigable passion for the outdoors…. He was jolly and a risk-taker,” Paredes described Espina. They were friends for about 15 years since both enjoy mountain-climbing.
Then, Paredes said, Espina started caving, becoming a member of Speleo.
Speleo and Geospecus are both caving associations under the Philippine Speological Society, a national organization.
Abella and the Dy couple agree that Espina was one of the most skilled spelunkers in Cebu. There are only about a total of 20 cavers in Cebu.
“We lost someone who cared for nature,” said Ivy, who knew the ophthalmologist and caver for about five years.
She said it takes passion to succeed in becoming a mountaineer or a caver, and Espina had that.
It wasn’t just about the adventure, but a genuine concern for the environment.
Spelunkers assess the biodiversity inside a cave, as well as check to see what skill levels are required to explore each cave.
Cavers like Espina are also responsible for documenting their explorations.
The cave Espina and his friends investigated had never been explored.
One group tried in April last year and this year but turned back, said University of San Carlos Mountaineers charter member Jerome Mil.
“It was just too deep,” he said.
The cave is in a property beside the parcel of land by owned by businessman Ramon Vidal.
Sources said that Vidal, who is also a mountaineer and one of the founding members of Team Habagat, was part of the rescue effort that got Espina and his fellow spelunkers out of the cave in Barangay Gaas in Balamban, Cebu.
Spelunkers are known for their camaraderie, said Judge Paredes.
Contrary to earlier news reports, Abella said that Espina’s companions were not trapped inside the cave but stayed with the doctor until help arrived.
That same concept was also taught to Paul Mata, who was trained by Espina under Speleo and the Inter-Mountaineering Society.
“He taught us to always put safety first,” said Mata. He was supposed to go with Espina in the exploration but had to do something else at the last minute.
But when news broke out that Espina had an accident inside the cave, Mata immediately proceeded to the area to help in the rescue operations.
Espina was one of five children. He taught optometry at the Southwestern University. (With KNR)
