Bogo City disaster personnel recover the body of the one-year-old girl who died in the Sunday afternoon fire in Bogo City. | Contributed photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines – Fire investigators from the Bogo City Fire Station are still to determine what caused the house fire that led to the death of a one-year-old child on Sunday, December 29.
Fire Senior Inspector Noe Ylanan, acting Bogo Fire Station chief, disclosed that they are looking at electrical malfunction or the explosion of a butane canister as possible causes of the fatal Bogo City fire incident.
Ylanan narrated that a neighbor of the victims, Madelyn Ngoho, said she heard an explosion inside the house shortly before the flames started at around 3:45 p.m. and a child was heard crying.
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The neighbor, in her panic, started calling for help from others to save the child still in the house.
However, no one was able to rescue the girl, Rhea Mae Flores Vera Cruz, who was left sleeping alone at home as her parents were both at work.
Her father, Ruel, worked as a delivery truck driver while her mother was a house helper in Manila.
The child’s four siblings, on the other hand, were reportedly playing at an internet cafe when the fire broke out and destroyed P2,000 worth of properties.
According to Ylanan, there were two appliances plugged in while the child was left sleeping by herself. Moreover, they found that the wires were substandard.
Ylanan added that they are looking into all the possible factors that started the Bogo City fire in the victim’s house.
In an interview with CDN Digital, the victim’s father shared that he left home at around 7:00 a.m. trusting that the older children will care for their siblings.
The eldest child, 9-years-old, took her siblings and left home on early Sunday morning to wait for their father who promised to go home early.
At around 3:00 p.m., the eldest child went back home to let their youngest sibling sleep. When the child fell asleep, the oldest went out again to wait for their father.
After a short while, however, the child was confused when a neighbor began calling out that their house was on fire.
Bogo City, which is a sixth class city of the Province of Cebu, is located at least 98 kilometers north of Cebu City. | with a report from Futch Anthony Inso