The mother of the four-year-old girl killed in the deadly Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1 crash last May sought help in retrieving her mobile phone lost after the fatal incident.
Cynthia Masongsong, the mother of Malia Kates Masongsong who perished in the crash caused by an accelerating sports utility vehicle (SUV) in the curbside area in NAIA Terminal 1, took to Facebook to appeal for assistance in locating her iPhone 11.
The matriarch said she lost her gadget at the same time she lost her daughter in tragedy.
“Baka [naman] po may [magandang] loob na magbalik ng CP [cellphone] ko. [Kasabay] ng [pagkawala] ni Malia, [hindi] na [din] po napabalik [sa’kin] ito, [andiyan] po lahat ng memories [namin] ng anak ko,” Cynthia said on June 10.
“MAY 4 po [nangyari ‘yung] malagim na aksidente sa [pamilya namin] at [pagkwala] ng kaisa-isang anak [namin]. May 5 ng gabi, [nasa] NAIA pa [‘yung] phone ko hanggang sa [hindi] na [siya] ma-trace,” she added.
Cynthia also accompanied her post with photos in her phone that included images of their deceased daughter and their family, as well as a screengrab of a tracker that indicated her phone was still in the airport area on May 5, a day after the fatal crash.
Cynthia also shared some updates in the comments section, saying that her phone was not in NAIA’s lost and found area.
She also admitted of only informing about her lost phone on June 10 since she and her husband, overseas Filipino worker Danmark Masongsong, were still “completely devastated.”
“[Ngayon] ko naisip [na ‘yun na lang] sana [bablikan] kong ala-ala,” Cynthia said in the comments with crying emojis.
The NAIA Terminal 1 crash
Cynthia and her daughter were among several individuals struck by an SUV at the Departure West Curbside of NAIA Terminal 1 on May 4. Malia, along with 29-year-old Dearick Keo Faustino—the family’s breadwinner—died in the incident.
Cynthia and three others sustained injuries.
The driver, 47-year-old Leo Sinlao Gonzales, told authorities he panicked when a sedan allegedly crossed in front of him as he was pulling out. However, CCTV footage did not show any obstruction in front of the vehicle prior to the crash.
CCTV footage of the incident did not show any obstruction in front of the SUV while it was still stationary.
Investigators said Gonzales mistakenly stepped on the gas pedal instead of the brake, causing his SUV to lurch forward, crash through a railing, and slam into the walkway near the terminal entrance.
He was charged with reckless imprudence resulting in double homicide, multiple serious physical injuries, and property damage.
Gonzales was released later that month after posting bail of P100,000.
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