The Southern Star bus which fell into a drainage ditch in Sierra Bullones on Saturday injuring seven passengers did not race with another vehicle prior to the accident, said an official of the bus company.

According to Southern Star branch manager German Avenido, a footage from a closed-circuit television camera mounted inside the bus showed that the ill-fated vehicle did not race with a Clynn Transit bus.

Avenido’s statement which was made during an interview with media on Thursday debunked previous accounts indicating that the bus was speeding in a race with another vehicle.

The company official also said that Ceres buses have global positioning systems to detect speeding units.

However, the Sierra Bullones police noted in its investigation that the Ceres bus with plate number FSHM 653 raced with a unit of Clynn Transit along the national highway in Brgy. Poblacion of said town right before the accident on January 21.

The incident reportedly followed after the Ceres bus’ driver, Danilo Bruno, lost control of the vehicle as it was travelling to Tagbilaran City injuring seven passengers, Bruno and the vehicle’s inspector. (Rey Tutas)