Hit by Train, Toddler Loses Leg

NAGA CITY-A two-year-old toddler in this city lost a leg when he was ran over by a Philippine National Railways (PNR) train Friday (November 20) morning.

According to a report of the Barangay Tabuco substation of the Naga City Police Office, victim James Silvino was hit by the train bound to Sipocot, Camarines Sur at about 9:30 AM after he had wandered off a portion of the railway in Barangay Triangulo while playing.

Barangay residents rushed the toddler to the Bicol Medical Center where he is now undergoing surgical operation, the police said.

The incident has been the first reported case of railway accident since the PNR train resumed operation in September. 

Earlier, the PNR had issued notice of eviction of several residents living on the PNR-owned land surrounding the Naga train station.

But the city government through the city committee on land use and urban poor affairs chaired by Councilor David Casper Nathan Sergio appealed to the  PNR on Tuesday to let 30 families living and doing business on PNR lands in the train station in this city stay for at least two more months.

PNR would be starting a renovation of the old PNR station located in Barangay Triangulo in this city. The renovation would require residents of the PNR-owned land near the station to leave.

"The notice of eviction would affect a total of 50 families, and although the residents themselves admitted that the land they were settling on was government property, they said they could not leave all at once," said Sergio.

He said the city government would provide assistance to those who would be displaced especially those who do not have the capacity to own a new house or to relocate immediately.

"Although most of the properties located there are small stores and stalls, and boarding houses, we still foresee that many would be affected that's why we made an appeal to the PNR."

Representatives from the city government and the PNR discussed the situation in a regular session of the city council.

Sergio said the bilateral meeting resulted to the PNR's being amenable to extending the order to vacate for at least two months.

"We also had alerted our urban poor affairs office to coordinate with PNR and the affected families."

But he said the PNR also appealed to the city government to make the clearing of the PNR land surrounding the Naga station be done as soon as possible, as the needed renovations very much urgent.

PNR said it was not asking the city government to make possible the clearing of all PNR-owned properties.

"It is just asking the clearing of the area around the Naga station," said Sergio.

He said they were anticipating that in the long term, about 2000 families would be affected in Naga by the time the PNR started the full rehabilitation of the railway was started.

"So as early as now, the city government is already coordinating with the National Housing Authority to address this issue."

He said the city government would relocate displaced families in case the PNR would put up additional tracks parallel to the old tracks, as what had been planned.

"We have to strike balance between the welfare of the affected families and the benefits that the rehabilitation of the railways would bring to city residents and to the city as a whole," said Sergio.

The widening of the PNR tracks was expected to affect at least five villages in the city