Portions of the Mandaue City Hall will be closed to the public indefinitely after it was damaged by a dawn fire on Thursday, June 11, 2020. | Photos courtesy of Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes
CEBU CITY, Philippines – Portions of Mandaue City Hall will be closed off from the public indefinitely after it was damaged by an early morning fire on Thursday, June 11, 2020.
Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes announced on Facebook in the morning of Thursday that the wing of the Presidencia, where the legislative offices are located, was ravaged by a fire.
Mandaue City Hall is also commonly known as Presidencia, referring to the Neo-Greg style of the building that holds the seat of the city government.
Cortes said they are still awaiting the official report from fire investigators to determine the cause of the incident.
“Ako nagatoo nga pagsuway lamang kini ug dili kini mamahimong babag para makahatag ta sa igo, tiunay ug saktong serbisyo ngadto sa mga kaigsoonan natong Mandauehanon,” Cortes said.
(I believed this is just a trial and that it won’t stop us from doing sincere public service to our fellow Mandauehanons.)
In an interview with Cebu Daily News Digital, the Mandaue City Fire Department said they pegged the damage at around P300,000.
According to Senior Fire Office 1 Socrates Jude Nacua Jr., they received the fire alarm at 2:49 a.m., and it was raised to second alarm seven minutes later or at 2:56 a.m.
Nacua said the fire was put out an hour later.
“It was officially declared fire out by 3:59 a.m. As of this point, we’re still investigating its cause,” Nacua told CDN Digital in a mix of English and Cebuano. /bmjo