President Duterte visits relatives of Davao mall fire victims

President Rodrigo Duterte visited the relatives of the victims of the Davao mall fire and joined them as they waited for updates on the 37 people reported trapped in the fire that broke out Saturday morning.

Police and fire officials briefed the President on the incident upon his arrival in the area, a GMA News report said early on Sunday.

Also, the report said that Duterte spoke with the victims' relatives and expressed concerns over the possibility that survivors could still be found among those reported trapped, 16 hours after the fire broke out.

The President left the mall area at about 4 a.m. Sunday, the report added.

On the other hand, 37 people were believed killed in a fire that hit  the New City Commercial Corporation (NCCC) Mall Davao, located at the corner of Mac Arthur Highway and MAA road, Davao City Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte said Sunday.

A Bureau of Fire Protection commander at the scene said the chances of the 37 surviving were "zero", Paolo Duterte wrote in a Facebook post.

The blaze started at the four-story NCCC Mall on Saturday morning and people were trapped inside, including in a call center on the top floor.  Until Sunday morning, the fire has not been put out, a report on Super Radyo dzBB said. —LBG, GMA News