CITY OF SAN JOSE DEL MONTE, Bulacan — Holy Mass offerings at the St. Peter the Apostle Parish Church in this city, in which a portion of its balcony collapsed on Ash Wednesday, have already resumed.

This was announced by its parish priest Fr. Romulo Perez during a video interview with the City Public Information Office.

Fr. Perez said the church, located in Barangay Tungkong Mangga in this city, is now safe for occupancy.

The Office of the City Building Official, headed by Pavel Halog, has also released a certificate of final inspection on the church structure saying that “generally the building is safe for occupancy.”

The church structures were inspected on February 14, 15, 19, 20 and 21 this year by Halog’s technical personnel.

It can be recalled that a Holy Mass for Ash Wednesday was being held in the morning of February 14 when a portion of the second floor balcony of the church collapsed.
Luneta Morales, an 82-year old choir member, died in a hospital several hours after the accident due to cardiac arrest caused by blunt trauma while 56 others were brought to different hospitals for medical treatments with most of them sent home after receiving emergency medical treatments.

City Mayor Arthur Robes has ordered city building officials to conduct inspections on the structural integrity of all old churches and schools in the city while Bishop Dennis Villarojo, of the Diocese of Malolos, has also released an official statement saying, ”I have also instructed all parish priests to check their parish structures considering the great number of faithful coming every year to Lenten celebrations.”