NEW DETAILS have emerged surrounding the death of a 54-year-old construction worker whose body was retrieved on Saturday, revealing that he was swept away while attempting to navigate a flooded creek crossing during Friday night’s downpour in Tugbok District.
Investigation reports obtained by the media identified the victim as Alias Rolan, a resident of Purok Rambutan, Barangay Talandang.
According to his cousin, 50-year-old store owner Emmylou, Rolan was riding home on his black-and-orange Honda Wave 110 motorcycle at around 7 p.m. on July 24, 2026, amid intense heavy rainfall brought on by the southwest monsoon ( Habagat ).
Eyewitness accounts indicate that as Rolan attempted to cross an overflowing creek near his community, the sudden force of the raging flash flood overwhelmed his motorcycle.
Both Rolan and his vehicle were immediately pulled downstream into a violent current, which dragged them over a steep descent featuring an estimated vertical drop of 50 to 70 meters.
While responders recovered Rolan’s damaged motorcycle shortly after the incident on Friday evening, the construction worker was washed further downstream, launching an overnight search and retrieval operation.
3-kilometer search and recovery
Following an intensive search by local emergency responders, police, and community volunteers, Rolan’s body was discovered at around 9:50 a.m. on Saturday, July 25, along the riverbanks of Purok 5, Sitio Luman, Barangay New Valencia—approximately three kilometers away from where he was swept over the waterfall-like drop.
An inspection by the Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) team led by PMAJ Roldan M. Parreño confirmed that Jose suffered fatal drowning and multiple severe traumatic injuries sustained during the steep fall and subsequent drift down the swollen river.
His family, through his son Roy, executed a formal waiver opting against an autopsy, citing conviction that the tragic incident was entirely accidental.
