A FARMER was killed, while another was wounded in an explosion in a remote village of Zamboanga del Sur, the police reported.
Police Captain Edwin Duco, Police Regional Office-Zamboanga Peninsula information officer, identified the fatality as Henry Baterna Jr., 46, and wounded was his nephew, Stenard Gacho, 28.
Duco said that prior to the incident, the victims went to clean their farmland around 12:15 p.m. Tuesday, April 13, in Purok 1 in Upper Lodiong village, Dimataling, Zamboanga Del Sur.
Duco, quoting a report from Dimataling Municipal Police Station, said that Baterna "saw something, which look like a round tin can," while cleaning their farm.
"He (Baterna) got curious and touched it when suddenly, it exploded," Duco said, quoting a report from Dimataling police.
He said Baterna was rushed to the hospital but was declared dead on arrival by the attending physician, while Gacho was admitted for treatment.
He said the responding team recovered several tiny pieces of fragments scattered at the scene and were forwarded to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Team for identification. (SunStar Zamboanga)