3 dead in Tondo fire

At least three people were reported killed in a fire that razed a residential area in Manila's Tondo district Tuesday afternoon. The fatalities - one of them a two-year-old child - were found inside the house where the fire was believed to have started, radio dzBB's Cecilia Villarosa reported. Chief Inspector Bonifacio Carta, head of the Manila Fire Department's arson unit, said the other two fatalities were adult women. On the other hand, the report said at least 200 families were affected while P2 million in property was destroyed in the fire along Zaragoza Street in Del Pan in Tondo. Traffic was disrupted near the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) Road as fire trucks responding to the blaze occupied the area. Initial investigation showed the fire reached the fifth alarm as of 3:39 p.m. but was placed under control at 3:54 p.m. Arson investigators said some 100 shanties were razed while 200 families were affected by the fire. — DVM, GMA News