Victims return to fire scene to salvage belongings

The ruins of the houses are all that remain of the 14 houses destroyed by last Saturday’s fire in Capitol Site. (CDN photo/MICHAELA DOLORES)

Most of the 30 families or 120 individuals who were displaced during last Saturday’s fire that hit Villalon Drive, Sitio Lower Panaghi-usa, Barangay Capitol Site returned to the fire scene yesterday to salvage belongings that can still be used.

A lot of them, however, had nothing left.

Priscilla Quiñones, a resident of the area in the last three years, said she failed to save anything when the fire broke out.

“Ako gyud gisiguro og kuha ang akong apo kay bahala na nang mga butang uy (I made sure that my grandson was safe. I didn’t care about the things),” she said.

After securing her three-year-old grandson, she then went back to get her pet dog.

“Kato pa gyud ko ka-experience nga nagkurog ko uy. Nakaingon gyud ko nga paita gyud aning sunog. Maypa kung bagyo kay naa pa tay mapunit. Kani kay magsugod gyud tas uno (It was the first time that I experienced that I was really trembling because I was scared. It’s better for a typhoon to hit us because we can still recover some of our belongings, but with a fire, we have to start at the beginning),” said Quiñones.

As of yesterday, she said they were still waiting for cash assistance from the government. They have been receiving food packs since Saturday evening, though.

She said she was also hoping that the government will give them G.I. sheets and hollow blocks so that they can start rebuilding our homes.
Quiñones and six family members depend only her husband, a habal-habal driver.

SFO2 Alberto Jagdon, Cebu City arson investigator, said the fire destroyed at least 14 houses. It was placed under control at 6:52 p.m. Saturday. Damage was estimated at P250,000.

Jagdon said they were looking into a report that the fire started in a parked Toyota Light Ace van with plate no. GDZ-800 at 6:13 p.m. on Saturday.
Nancy Lim suffered burns on her face, shoulder and back as she tried to escape from the fire.

Porcia Basmayor of the Cebu City Department of Social Welfare and Services said most of the victims now occupy tents and the Capitol Site basketball court while others opted to stay with relatives.

Basmayor said distribution of packed meals will continue for three days, after which the victims will be given relief goods that will include rice and canned goods.

Basmayor said the distribution of the P10,000 cash assistance will be made after the revalidation of the initial list of the fire-affected families.

Among those who returned to their burned properties to retrieve what they can was 15-year-old Kaye Marie Galon, who went back with her family to clean up their burned down house.

“Wala sad gyud mi na-save. Pati ako guitar kay nasunog (We didn’t save anything, even my guitar was burned),” said Galon. She also lost her school records to the fire.