A fire is seen in this aerial shot over Barangay Inayawan in Cebu City on Friday, March 17, 2023. | contributed photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines– A total of 34 families or 119 individuals were displaced after a fire hit a residential area in Sitio Little Plaza, Barangay Inayawan, Cebu City, on Friday morning, March 17, 2023.
According to the latest report from the Cebu City Fire Office, the fire that lasted about an hour burned 18 houses and partially burned three others, which were situated in a 600-square meter affected area.
F03 Fulbert Navarro of the Cebu City Fire Office also pegged the amount of damage to properties at around P900,000.
One individual identified as Jonado Fuentes, 52, suffered a heart attack during the incident and died, Navarro confirmed.
Based on their initial investigation, Navarro said the fire started on the second floor of a house owned by a certain Lorencia “Puring” Quiobe.
He, however, has yet to divulge the real cause of the fire pending the complete results of the investigation.
“Maglisod pa ta og process sa witness kay ang only witness kay PWD (person with disability), special child. Lisod makuhaan og information. Hinay-hinayan lang namo,” he told CDN Digital.
(It is still difficult for us to process a witness because the only witness is a PWD, a special child. It is difficult to get information. We will try to get it little by little.)
Firefighters received information of the incident at 8:16 a.m. on Friday. They raised the first alarm at 8:23 a.m and declared fire under control at 8:51 a.m.
Fire out was declared at 9:02 a.m.
Navarro admitted that it was difficult for firefighters to enter the fire area because the alleys leading to the site were narrow.
He said fire responders had to conduct an engine relay of 15 to 20 fire hoses so they could penetrate the area of the incident.
A total of 50 fire trucks responded during the said fire incident.
“Nagpasalamat ta nga wala kaayo’y hangin,” he said.
(We are thankful that the wind wasn’t strong.)
It is the 14th fire incident in the city this March, which is Fire Prevention Month.
“Magmatngon ta pirmi sa panimalay ug likayan gyod nato ng pagamit og substandard nga mga gamit. Kanang mga gamita peligroso na. Tinuod barato, pero risgo kana siya. Mag save mo sa gamay nga butang…unya og masunog mas dako og gastuhon hinuon,” he urged Cebuanos.
(We should be careful at home and avoid using substandard products. Those products are dangerous. It’s true, they’re cheap, but they are dangerous. You can save a little with those products but if it causes a fire, you’d end up spending a lot.)
/bmjo
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