TV performer drowns in Davao vacation
Aspiring actor and entertainer Franco Hernandez of the all-male dance group Hashtags drowned while vacationing in Davao Occidental on Saturday.
Hernandez, 26, was having a boat ride with his girlfriend, fellow Hashtags member Tom Doromal and two others in North Lamidan, Don Marcelino town when big waves hit their motorized boat, according to a report by ABS-CBN news.
Hernandez, Franco Miguel Hernandez Lumunlan in real life, and his girlfriend reportedly fell into the water and were rescued by the boat driver and personnel, the report said.
The performer was unconscious when he was retrieved, prompting his companions to rush him to the Estacion Medical Clinic in nearby Malita town, where he was declared dead on arrival. The Hashtags is part of
noontime show It’s Showtime.
Friends from showbiz including Vice Ganda, Gretchen Ho and Kim Chiu as well as talent agency Cornerstone Entertainment, which managed Hernandez, took to social media to express their grief over his death.
Cornerstone described Fernandez as a “very promising talent, a true star in every sense of the word, passionate, hardworking, humble and liked by all.”