source: mb.com.ph
MANILA, Philippines -- A defective electrical outlet plugged with a cell phone charger was held responsible for the big fire that hit a depressed community in Barangay Guadalupe Viejo in Makati City that left over 2,700 families homeless last Tuesday.
Makati City fire Chief Ricardo Perdigon said the fire began in the house of a certain Jess Castro before spreading to the neighborhood of shanties of Laperal Compound, which has been hit by fire several times.
Based on investigation, a tenant of Castro plugged a cell phone charger into an electrical outlet when suddenly, sparks emitted from the electrical outlet and then flames immediately spread. In just about two hours, the blaze destroyed 900 houses, which were made of concrete
and light materials.
The fire spread so fast that some of the residents failed to save their belongings, fire probers said.
Fortunately, no casualty was reported, but several residents suffered minor injuries and were taken to the Ospital ng Maynila, said Perdigon.
For now, homeless residents have been sheltered at the barangay hall and the San Carlos Seminary.
Meanwhile, the city government urged the families affected by the fire to voluntarily relocate for their safety and peace of mind.
The city government is offering relocation at the Makati-GK Village in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan, and in Calauan, Laguna.
“We are strongly urging them to relocate. We feel that the place may no longer be safe. It’s for their own safety and peace of mind,” Mayor Jejomar Erwin S. Binay said.
As encouragement, Binay assured them that they will continue to receive benefits as Makati residents even if they relocate.
Binay ordered his men to study if it is still safe to allow settlers back to Laperal, considering that the area has been hit by fires several times, is crowded, and lacks basic sanitation facilities.
A day after fire engulfed their community, residents continue to clean up and sell wood, plastic, and metal pieces left from the compound from their burnt houses while some helpless fire victims still scavenge on their devastated homes, hoping that they could still find their possessions that still may be useful to them.
Eight-month pregnant fire victim Karen Godinez, 22, said she wasn’t able to save some of her belongings during the fire.
“We lost everything in the fire, our money, appliances, and our home. We have nowhere to go,” said Godinez, adding that she and her husband Antonio Magdaya plan to relocate to their hometown, Dipolog City in Mindanao.
Godinez said she also experienced the fire tragedy that happened in 2008 in the same compound. She said that yesterday’s fire was more intense compared to the fire in 2008.
“The fire really spread so quickly, it’s because houses were next to each other,” she said. She also recalled that gas and electric explosions aggravated the fire even more.
Juliet Malinao was another fire victim who lost everything in the fire.
When she first heard shouts of fire, Malinao said her only concern was to save her two siblings. When she found the two family members, she could not do anything but helplessly watch the fire burn their home into ashes.
She said she came all the way from Mindanao before renting a shanty in Laperal Compound for more than a year already. Her husband works as a construction worker.
She said the family plans to return to Mindanao.
But without money, Malinao plans to seek help from the Makati City government.
The city Social Welfare Office has set up a community kitchen to provide food for the victims, and began distributing relief goods, clothing, and blankets. The Engineering Department also started constructing makeshift tents where the victims may stay temporarily.
The Health Department and Makati Rescue will be in charge of first aid and medical assistance centers.
Binay said the city government will seek the approval of the Nuestra Senora de Gracia Church to allow victims to stay there for the meantime.
Families will also be moved to the barangay covered court and nearby public schools.
source: mb.com.ph
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