RESIDENTS of Sitio Santo Niño in Barangay Apas, Cebu City, were shocked when a 10-year-old boy, a student of Camp Lapu-Lapu Elementary School, cried out in pain.
Edwin Dionio reported that, upon stepping out of his house, he saw the child holding a broken piece of rebar with a hooked end lodged in his left eye.
Unable to remove it, they immediately called the Barangay Apas fire volunteers, who then notified the Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO).
The victim (name withheld for being a minor), a Grade 4 student from Camp Lapu-Lapu Elementary School, is a resident of Sitio Mahayahay, Barangay Apas, Cebu City.
“Natingala ko kay naay ni tyabaw. Akong gi expect kana lang mga bata nga ga duwa, mao to lain naman gyud kay dugay ang iyang pag tyabaw, mao to pag tan-aw nako, nag dinaganay na ang iyang mga kuyog. Siguro to pag duol nako nag taop natong kabilya sa iyang mata,” said Dionio.
(I was surprised to hear someone screaming. At first, I thought it was just kids playing, but the scream was different and lasted longer. When I looked closer, I saw his friends running toward him, and there was the rebar stuck in his eye.)
Dionio explained that the rebar was used as a makeshift hook for a sagging electrical wire, meant to prevent people from hitting their heads on it as they passed through his yard. They never thought it could pose a danger to children since it was high up and out of reach.
When Dionio asked the victim what happened, the boy reportedly said that the rebar suddenly snagged his eye.
Dionio believes there was something supernatural at play, as the rebar had been used for a long time without any accidents.
“Murag si Kamatayan to sir kay wala gyud koy idea nga ma ingun ato to kay mikalit ra man daw og abot sa iyang mata ang kabilya,” said Dionio.
(It’s like Death himself intervened. I can’t understand how that rebar just reached his eye like that.)
CDRRMO personnel tried to remove the rebar but struggled, so they quickly brought the boy to Cebu City Medical Center, with support from the Bureau of Fire Protection.
The Cebu City Social Welfare and Services (CSWS) assured that it would assist the child through its Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) program.
Portia Basmayor, head of CSWS at Cebu City Hall, said the City Government will cover the victim’s medical assistance.
“Nag budget man gyud ta sa Cebu City Government og financial assistance nga mahatag dayon nato kung naay emergency nga panghitabo ba sa atung mga tawo dinhi sa Siyudad sa Sugbo,” said Basmayor.
(Our Cebu City Government has allocated funds for emergency financial assistance to help our residents in need.)
Neighbors mentioned that the child often took this shortcut to school along with other students, passing through the area where the accident happened.
The boy’s older sibling currently looks after him, as his parents live in Leyte. Due to financial hardship, he walks from Sitio Mahayahay to school, taking a path that cuts through Sitio Santo Niño daily at noon. (AYB)
