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Sunday, August 31, 2003
Grenade explodes in airport office
By Allan I. Varquez & Elias O. Baquero
CEBU -- A grenade explosion rocked the one-story Mactan airport radar building and killed an official of the Air Transportation Office (ATO) Saturday afternoon.
Security officials at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport said the incident was either a suicide or an accident, and not linked in any way to terrorist threats.
No other person was seen in the office of Cesar Simeon, who was in charge of the facility, before and during the explosion at 2:15 p.m., said Supt. Jose Cosio Jr., the deputy chief of the Aviation Security Group.
Simeon, 54, a brother-in-law of Lapu-Lapu City Councilor Corazon Ouano, died two hours after the explosion, in the Mactan Community Hospital.
The tragedy did not affect airport operations, said General Manager Angelo Verdan of the Mactan-Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA).
The radar building is about 1.5 kilometers from the runway.
Repairs on the runway will start tomorrow despite a fresh case and a pending suit before the Regional Trial Court Branch (RTC) Branch 5, Verdan said.
Preparatory work began Thursday night, after the MCIAA obtained an order from the Court of Appeals superseding the restraining order RTC Branch 5 Judge Ireneo Gako Jr. issued.
Ammunitions
As repairs start, security officials at the airport will have to look into how Simeon, an ATO employee for the past 19 years, was able to bring or keep a grenade in his office undetected.
"Maybe before we tightened the security around the airport, the grenade was already in his office," Cosio told reporters.
Policemen from the Scene of Crime Operations office also found a box of M-16 ammunition, several bullets and empty shells for a .45 pistol and a .38 revolver and an empty M-16 magazine that littered the floor of Simeon's office.
The explosion shattered the glass window and ripped the plywood ceiling.
Supt. Arturo Evangelista, chief of the PNP Regional Aviation Security Group, said he was dismayed that the airport police only informed his office more than two hours after the explosion.
ATO owns the radar building, which serves as the navigational aid to outgoing and incoming planes at the airport.
On its left is the generator building, which switches on automatically during a power outage. Ten meters from it is the airport's fire and rescue office.
Sought help
Cosio said airport officials sent trained K-9 dogs to Simeon's office before notifying his office.
"For now, we are looking into whether this is a suicide or accident," he said.
Fire and rescue personnel, who were the first to get inside Simeon's office, said Simeon was lying on his folding bed when the grenade exploded.
Cosio said Simeon was heard telling his rescuers to save him because he was afraid he was going to die and he had children.
Simeon started working for the ATO in 1974.
His two subordinates said they did not notice any sign that Simeon was depressed.
"He never talked about his personal life, and he was a dedicated employee," one ATO worker said.
The two, who were in the generator building at the time of the blast, said they did not see Simeon bringing a grenade to his office. Nor did he mention any ammunition.
"I am waiting for the result of the investigation by the police before making further statement of the incident," General Manager Verdan said.
Repairs on
In the meantime, he will be busy with the runway repairs, a primary concern because of the runway's deteriorating condition.
Verdan said the rejuvenation works will be completed in 25 days.
Crisologo Saavedra, country manager of US-based Echelon Industries Inc., has a pending motion before the RTC seeking to stop the payment of the rejuvenation chemicals MCIAA ordered from Seven (7) H Technochem Industries Inc.
But Verdan is confident the court will deny it because of the appellate court's order prohibiting the RTC from stopping the runway repairs.
Seven (7) H issued a three-year warranty through a bond with the Government Service Insurance System. Aside from the bond, there is also a manufacturer's warranty against product defects. (Sun.Star Cebu) |
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