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Wednesday, March 19, 2008
16 hurt in Mendiola blast
MANILA -- At least 16 persons were wounded after an unidentified man allegedly hurled a hand grenade near the La Consolacion College and College of the Holy Spirit in Mendiola, Manila Tuesday.
Police said the explosion took place around 4:20 p.m. at a time when students are rushing out of schools before the Holy Week break.
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The blast also damaged a Honda CRV vehicle bearing license plate number XDV-530. The car was parked in front of a café, which serves as the practicum venue of Hotel and Restaurant Management (HRM) students of the schools.
Presidential security guards rushed to the scene of the blast about a block from the gates of Malacañang Palace.
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was in northern Baguio City when the explosion, believed by police as a gang-related incident, took place. She was in Baguio City where she presided over the graduation of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA).
Asked whether the Palace could have been the target, Presidential Security Group (PSG) Chief Romeo Prestoza told reporters in Baguio: "Of course not. We are treating this as a police matter."
According to Prestoza, police are investigating on the fraternity war angle after witnesses saw a group of young men at the site, with one of them throwing something before they ran off and the explosion happened.
He said the incident is not a cause of concern for the PSG, but more of the school authorities and the MPD.
But Prestoza said the PSG is still involved because the incident happened a few meters from Malacañang's Mendiola gate.
A police officer, speaking on condition anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media, said at least two of the wounded belong to an illegal gang suspected to be involved in a recent fatal attack on a member of a rival group.
Others among the 16 wounded included several students, street vendors, and security guards, said witness Precy Asuncion.
One of the injured victims was identified as Ericson Fuentes, a student of the Centro Escolar University (CEU). He was taken to the University of Sto. Tomas (UST) Hospital after sustaining shrapnel wounds.
The other injured victims were taken to Lourdes Hospital, Manila Doctor's Hospital, UST Hospital and other undisclosed medical facilities.
The extent of their injuries was not immediately known.
Cindy Francisco, a nursing graduate from a nearby college, said she was sitting on the sidewalk when "suddenly there was an explosion."
"It was so loud," she said.
She said a group of men who "seemed to know what was going to happen" immediately disappeared after the blast.
Manila Police District (MPD)-Station 8 Chief Jimmy Tiu, who led a team of policemen who responded to the area to investigate the explosion, said a hand grenade could have been thrown, causing the explosion. This after the policemen found the shrapnel at the blast scene.
According to Tiu, MPD bomb experts revealed that the grenade exploded under the vehicle.
Mendiola Street is still open to traffic Tuesday, but two fire trucks were parked in front of the McDonald's branch beside La Consolacion College.
Inside the Mendiola gate was another fire truck and a van with about 10 PSG members in jungle camouflage uniforms and in full battle gear. (Sunnex/AP)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Bacolod. (March 19, 2008 issue)
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