A son's sacrifice for his father ended in tragedy. Dion Angelo “Gelo” dela Rosa, 20 years old, died after contracting leptospirosis while searching for his missing father amid widespread flooding in Metro Manila.
It all started on July 22 when his father, Jayson, left to drop one of his children off at the bus terminal in Caloocan. He never returned home. After 24 hours, the family began to worry. Despite the high floodwaters and continuous rain, they conducted a search in various areas and precincts.
Jayson was found on July 25, handcuffed, at Substation 2 in East Grace Park, Caloocan. According to police, he was arrested for allegedly playing “kara y krus,” a small bet involving coins. The family strongly denied this, saying the father of the family was not a gambler and that they were not immediately informed of the arrest.
While this was happening, Gelo began to fall ill. On July 27, after several days of searching and wading through the floodwaters, he developed a fever and later died of leptospirosis. Gelo was a third-year HRM student and the hope of his family.
On August 2, the family posted bail of ₱30,000 so Jayson could attend his son's funeral. On social media, the incident drew strong reactions, calling it a "series of misfortunes" and a "parable of our time." The family is calling for justice and hopes that this type of abuse and neglect will never happen again.
