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Tearful farewell as second fatal victim of Lucky Plaza crash repatriated to the Philippines

SINGAPORE — There was not a dry eye in the room as a small group of Filipinos said their last goodbyes to Abigail Danao Leste, one of two foreign domestic workers who died in the Lucky Plaza car crash last weekend.

Friends and a relative at the wake of 41-year-old Abigail Danao Leste who died in the Lucky Plaza car crash on Dec 29, 2019.

Friends and a relative at the wake of 41-year-old Abigail Danao Leste who died in the Lucky Plaza car crash on Dec 29, 2019.

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SINGAPORE — There was not a dry eye in the room as a small group of Filipinos said their last goodbyes to Abigail Danao Leste, one of two foreign domestic workers who died in the Lucky Plaza car crash last weekend.

The 41-year-old’s body was to be repatriated to Manila, where her family is waiting to receive it before they make the 10-hour overland journey to Leste’s hometown of Apaari.

On Thursday (Jan 2) afternoon, 10 of Leste’s friends, including her cousin, had arrived at a funeral parlour in Geylang Bahru to pay their final respects to the domestic worker who died after a black Honda crashed into her and her friends.

The accident took place at a pavement on Nutmeg Road, behind Lucky Plaza, at about 5pm last Sunday. Apart from the two who died, four other Filipinas were injured and taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital. Two of them have since been discharged.

The driver of the car, a 64-year-old man, was arrested at the scene for dangerous driving causing death.

Leste’s employers were not present at the wake as they are overseas and unable to return to Singapore in time.

While Leste’s friends declined to speak to the media, they were observed sharing memories of her.

They had also placed Leste’s favourite food — a cheese burger meal from McDonald’s — in front of her portrait before they took wefies with the coffin, and live streamed portions of the wake for those who could not make it.

Ronalyn, cousin of Abigail Danao Leste, holding up her phone for a video call with Leste's family in the Philippines. Photo: Raj Nadarajan/TODAY

Leste’s cousin, who goes by the name of Ronalyn, sat on a chair beside the coffin and was seen crying inconsolably. She was comforted by staff members from the Centre for Domestic Employees (CDE).

The help centre for maids had assisted with Leste’s funeral arrangements and started a fundraising campaign for the six victims and their beneficiaries.

As of Thursday, 6pm, the campaign has raised close to S$300,000 — double its original target of S$150,000.

Later during the wake, Ms Ronalyn set up a video call with Leste’s daughter, Jackie, so that she could look at her mother’s coffin and the people who had showed up to say goodbye.

Leste’s family were unable to make it to Singapore.

Her son, Jhef, penned a heartfelt Facebook post on Monday.

He wrote in Bisaya, a Filipino dialect, that his mother had been working in Singapore for 14 years, and that he and his sister had not been able to spend Christmas or New Year’s Day with her since 2016.

Just before the pallbearers arrived, Leste’s friends gathered around her coffin to say a tearful prayer and embraced each other for emotional support.

Friends and cousin of 41-year-old Abigail Danao Leste sending her off before her body was flown back to the Philippines. Photo: Raj Nadarajan/TODAY

Speaking to the media after the funeral, CDE’s executive director Shamsul Kamar said that the priority is to ensure the safe return of the remains of the deceased to their families.

“Fundamentally, we want to bring some closure to the family,” he said.

The remains of Arlyn Picar Nucos, the other domestic worker who died in the accident, were repatriated to the Philippines on Wednesday.

Mr Shamsul said that CDE will assess the needs of the survivors and their families before deciding how best to allocate the funds raised.

“I’m very heartened to know our fundraising efforts have been overwhelming, beyond our expectations,” he said. “I believe that episodes like this bring the humanity out of people.”

He gave the assurance that the donations will be dispersed through the Domestic Employees Welfare Fund, which is audited by the National Council of Social Service.

Related topics

Lucky Plaza accident death Filipino domestic worker Centre for Domestic Employees

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