MANILA– The Philippine Embassy in Washington on Monday (Manila time) clarified that Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez is alive, as opposed to a City Herald news report which allegedly included him among victims killed in the tragic Florida bridge collapse.
“There is absolutely no truth to the story posted on the website City Herald that Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez was identified as among those who perished in the Florida bridge collapse,” the embassy said in a statement.
“Ambassador Romualdez is very much alive and doing well in Washington, D.C.,” it added.
In the same statement, the embassy has called on netizens to stop sharing information posted by what it tagged “dubious outfits” such as the City Herald.
“Spreading false stories in the wake of a tragedy is deplorable,” the statement read.
Six were confirmed dead after the collapse of a bridge expected to provide safe passage over a canal and six lanes of traffic. Search and rescue efforts are still on going, but as of posting the Department of Foreign Affairs said there are no reports that Filipinos were among the casualties.