20160313 Philippines Cebu fire destroys P2.4 M worth of property
Philippines Mar 12 2016 “Houses”
Dead : dead 0 or unknown Burnout : more than 70 Injured : injured 0 or unknown
Cebu fire destroys P2.4 M worth of property
Updated: 2016-03-13-00:00
At least P2.4 million worth of property went up in smoke in a fire that left some 1,000 families homeless in Mandaue City, Cebu early yesterday morning.
The fire destroyed at least 700 houses in the villages of Guizo and Mantuyong, according to city fire marshal Sr. Insp. Joel Abarquez.
The city social welfare and services office said the blaze, believed sparked by an unattended candle, broke out shortly before 2 a.m. and was declared under control at 4 a.m.
The fire started at the house of a certain Aljun and quickly spread to adjacent structures, mostly made of light materials.
Abarquez said their fire trucks had difficulty reaching the area as it was densely populated.
He said of the 700 houses, 500 were located in Guizo and 200 in Mantuyong.
Fire victim Efren Cañete, 40, said none of his family members was hurt in the blaze, but all their belongings were burned.
Cañete, along with other fire victims, were staying at a makeshift camp in front of the Guizo barangay hall and the Cebu International Convention Center.
He said no one brought them food and they had to cut a portion of a neighbor’s pig roasted in the blaze for lunch.
City spokesman Roger Paler said a majority of the affected houses were located on a 9.2-hectare property owned by the city government.
He said yesterday’s fire was the third to hit the area since 2002.
Paler said Mayor Jonas Cortes ordered a re-blocking of the property before the victims could be allowed to rebuild their homes. He said the area would be fenced to pave the way for the reblocking.
Another fire victim, Melodina Alvarez, said the city government should provide them relocation if they would not be allowed to immediately return and rebuild their homes.
Paler said they would borrow additional tents from the provincial government to be able to provide for all the homeless families.
He said the city disaster risk reduction and management council would pass a resolution allowing the local government to release financial assistance for the victims.
Officials of the two villages declared the areas under a state of calamity.
Web Source: Philstar
http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2016/03/13/1562440/cebu-fire-destroys-p2.4-m-worth-property