CDN Digital Photo by Paul Lauro
CEBU CITY, Philippines – At least P12 million in properties went up in smoke in a fire here that hit a house and a warehouse on Monday, April 15 which lasted for at least two hours.
Firefighters in Cebu City responded to a fire in a residential area in M. Velez Street, Brgy. Guadalupe at 3:16 a.m. on Monday. It started from a three-story house owned by a certain Rofino Gawchua, fire investigators from Cebu City Fire Station said.
The Guadalupe fire also spread to the neighboring warehouse that stored tires.
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It was raised to third alarm on 3:56 a.m., or roughly 30 minutes after firefighters arrived at the scene, due to the presence of flammable materials.
It took firefighters approximately two hours to put the flames under control at 5:38 a.m. By 6:25 a.m., they officially declared a fire out. Damages were pegged at P12 million.
While fire investigators continue to determine the cause, initial reports showed that the Guadalupe fire might have started from the ceiling of Gawchua’s house.
A certain Aniceta Bornales told fire officials that she saw flames on the ceiling of her room, prompting her to call authorities and wake up other members of the house and flee for safety.