A 21-year-old volleyball player from Cadiz City, hailed as one of the country’s rising sports talents, died after his motorcycle was hit and run over by a Ceres bus in front of a mall in Barangay Zone 2, Cadiz City, on Tuesday afternoon, November 11.
The victim was identified as Ike Andrew Barilea of Cadiz City who was an opposite spiker of the Alas Pilipinas Men’s Volleyball Team.
Police said Barilea was riding his Yamaha Sniper 150 when it was struck by a Ceres bus driven by a 41-year-old man from Barangay Singcang-Airport, Bacolod City.
Cadiz Police Deputy Chief, Lt. Mansueto De Jose, said initial investigation showed that both vehicles were traveling in the same direction when Barilea signaled to turn left.
The bus driver reportedly miscalculated his maneuver and hit the rear of the motorcycle.
Video footage circulating online showed that Barilea was still alive when responders brought him to a nearby hospital around noon. He sustained multiple injuries and was pronounced dead at about 4 p.m., the police said.
The bus driver is now in police custody.
Authorities said charges of reckless imprudence resulting in homicide are being prepared pending further investigation.
Barilea was known in the local sports community as “Cadiz City’s Pride.”
He had recently represented the country in the AVC Champions League in May as part of the Alas Pilipinas Men’s Volleyball Team.
In a statement, the team expressed grief over his passing, thanking him for the memories, laughter, and passion he brought to the court.
“The court feels emptier and our hearts heavier,” the statement read, adding, “Heaven gained an angel, but we lost a piece of ours. Fly high, our dear Alas” .*