ILOILO CITY: A truck carrying a load of cement plunged into a ravine in Barangay Madarag, San Enrique, Iloilo, on Thursday, February 8, prompting a frantic rescue operation for the trapped passenger who succumbed to the ordeal.

Airel Parcon, chief of San Enrique Municipal Police Station, said the road in that area was steep and it is suspected that the driver lost control of the vehicle, causing it to veer off the road and fall into a 30-foot ravine at around 6 a.m.

The 10-wheeler truck came from Iloilo City and was bound for Carles to deliver at least 300 bags of cement.

The police identified the driver as Jo-An Padilla, 39, from Barangay San Antonio, Pilar, Capiz, and the fatality as passenger/helper Jay-R Reyes, 30, a resident of Barangay Abong, Carles, Iloilo.

The police said Padilla was able to jump off the truck when the vehicle was about to fall into the ravine. He sustained injuries from the accident and was rushed to Don Valerio Palmares District Hospital in Passi City for treatment.

Reyes, on the other hand, was trapped in the wreckage.

Residents and rescue teams tried to pull Reyes from the wreckage but the steep and rugged terrain has complicated the rescue and retrieval efforts.

The remains of Reyes were retrieved at noon on the same day.