Bocaue Pagoda Tragedy
| Time | 8:15 p.m PST |
|---|---|
| Date | 2 July 1993 |
| Location | Bocaue, Bulacan |
| Cause | Overloading |
| Deaths | At least 266 |
The Bocaue Pagoda Tragedy refers to a fatal accident that occurred on July 2, 1993 during the 1993 Bocaue River Festival in Bocaue, Bulacan, in the Philippines. The accident involved a sinking of the floating pagoda, the centerpiece of the festivities, which resulted in the drowning of more than 200 devotees.
Background
The Bocaue River Festival is an annual celebration held every first Sunday of July in Bocaue, Bulacan, in the Philippines, in honor of the Holy Cross, the Mahal na Poon ng Krus sa Wawa, found in the river in the 1800s. The festivities involve a decorated pagoda on top of a barge surrounded by small boats accompanying it. A replica of the holy cross is placed at the top of the pagoda.[1][2][3]
The incident
The pagoda for the 1993 celebrations were estimated to be boarded by 800 to 1000 devotees. At 8:15 p.m, the accident occurred taking the lives of at least 266 people. The pagoda downed in the middle of the Bocaue River between the barangays Bunlo and Bambang.[2] The pagoda was 20 feet tall.[4]
According to witnesses many of the people on board the pagoda were forced to move to one side of the barge reacting to a kwitis, awayward sky rocket, flying towards the pagoda. The concentrated weight of the people on board tilted the barge. The people on board the pagoda panicked as they heard the noise of crackling timber was heard. The structure of the pagoda collapse and gradually sank to the riverbed.[2]
Witnesses further claimed that fishermen by the river bank drew their fishing boats towards the sinking pagoda to help save people from the pagoda. The pagoda's light was still on and its power generator was still operational as the pagoda sank causing many people to believe that electrocution caused some of the fatalities.[2]
Aftermath
Retrieval operations for the tragedy's victims took for several days. Victims were checked for vital signs in different area hospitals. The bodies of the fatalities were identified at the town plaza and the basketball court served as a morgue. The casualties of the incident were believed to have involved entire families.[2]
1994 celebrations for the Bocaue River Festival were sized down. The new pagoda made was just 6 feet tall compared to 1993's 20 feet tall pagoda. Only 50 people were allowed to board the raft. 12 boats accompanied the pagoda. The police and military lifeguards stationed on positions along the route of the pagoda procession. The event took place in the morning which commenced at 10:00 am. Relatives of the 1993 tragedy floated flowers and candles on the river to honor their loved ones. A mass was also held for the victims.[4] The date July 2 after the tragedy, became a day of mourning for the victims of the 1993 tragedy.[5]
Church and local officials decided to revive the grand procession and building of a large pagoda for the 2014 edition of the festival after coming up with safety measures for the devotees. The decision is a bid to boost the local economy of Bocaue. A 48-foot or three stories-high pagoda which stands on top of three large boats rented from Malabon was built for the 2014 Bocaue River Festival. The ground floor of the pagoda covered 200 square meters. The wooden pagoda was reinforced by steel. Only 150 devotees was allowed to board the pagoda at a time and each devotee were required to register and wear a lifevest. It was previously announced that 250 devotees were to be allowed to board the pagoda.[3][5]
References
- ↑ Sherbien (July 3, 2011). "Bocaue River Festival". CNN iReport. Retrieved July 5, 2014.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Lazaro, Ramon Efren (July 3, 2014). "Bocaue remembers ‘Pagoda Tragedy’". Business Mirror. Retrieved July 5, 2014.
- 1 2 Reyes-Estrope, Carmela (June 27, 2014). "Town revives pagoda 21 years after tragedy". Inquirer Central Luzon. Retrieved July 5, 2014.
- 1 2 "Bocaue 'wawa' parade sails on". Manila Standard. July 4, 1994. Retrieved July 5, 2014.
- 1 2 Lazaro, Ramon Efren (July 5, 2014). "Bocaue’s Krus sa Wawa celebration tries to rise from 1993 tragedy". Business Mirror. Retrieved July 5, 2014.