By Jennifer P. Rendon
The body of an elderly man who was buried alive while digging a deep well in Sibunag, Guimaras, has been recovered three days after the accident.
The discovery might have been delayed had it not been for a pair of slippers found near the well, which led to the location of 64-year-old Armando Arizala’s remains.
The Sibunag Municipal Police Station received a call at around 8 p.m. on February 17, reporting that an individual might have been buried alive in a borehole at Barangay San Isidro.
Suspicions were already pointing to Arizala, who had been missing since February 15.
Reports indicated that the victim left his home on the morning of February 15, claiming he was going to visit his wife in Negros Occidental.
However, his family and friends later discovered that he never arrived at his destination.
Porferio Doronila, a friend of the victim, found the pair of slippers near the borehole. He speculated that Arizala might have attempted to deepen the existing well to increase its water yield.
Tragically, it was presumed that the soil collapsed, burying him alive. The location was only several meters from where Arizala had been staying.
Doronila reported that when he inserted a bamboo stick into the well, blood seeped out, and a foul odor was emanating from the well.
Colonel Rhea Santos, the Guimaras police chief, mentioned that the police requested a backhoe from the local government to excavate the site.
Arizala’s body was retrieved at around 12:30 a.m. on February 18.
While the incident is believed to be an accident, the police have still urged Arizala’s family to consent to an autopsy to conclusively determine the cause of death.
