15 houses razed in NIA Road fire; QC gov't denies arson

At least 15 houses along NIA Road in Barangay Pinyahan, Quezon City were hit by a massive fire early Thursday morning. 

According to James Agustin’s report in “24 Oras”, the fire easily spread as the houses - made of light materials - were built close together. 

The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) raised the fire to a third alarm, with 25 fire trucks responding to the incident. 

Residents worked together to save their belongings. Meanwhile, some firefighters used ladders and positioned themselves on roofs to spray water at close range. 

Fear resonated again among the residents as a fire earlier struck their area last March 6, affecting over 2,300 families. 

“When I left my store, the fire was already huge,” said Rosie Honrada, who lost both her home and store to the fire. 

Meanwhile, elderly Luzviminda Martinez only saved a few of her belongings: “We couldn’t pass through. The kids were only able to save these and some clothes.” 

Roldan Cornelio, on the other hand, saved his sibling’s urn: “I grabbed my sibling’s urn and my father rushed out.” 

The fire was extinguished after more than an hour. Barangay records show that 71 families were affected, while authorities continue to investigate the cause of the blaze. 

“Based on the initial investigation by our team, the fire originated from a house that was partially damaged in a previous fire. It was vacant and had no electricity supply,” said Fire Sr. Inspector Robert Maravilla, BFP QC Station 4 commander. 

Some residents suspect the fire was intentional. They claimed the local government recently gave them until May 30 to vacate the area to make way for a vertical housing project. 

“We already agreed during our meeting that we would leave. So, did they really have to do this to us?” said Honrada. 

But a barangay official did not agree with the residents' claims. 

“No one wanted this to happen…We were yet to find out what really happened,” said Barangay Pinyahan captain Ricardo Villaflor. 

“The investigation is still ongoing. We are still finding out if their claims that the fire was intentional is true,” said Maravilla. 

The QC government said there is no basis for the allegations that the fire was intentional, especially since the BFP's initial investigation suggests the blaze was caused by someone burning copper in an abandoned house.

“Base sa paunang imbestigasyon ng Bureau of Fire Protection-QC, ang sunog ay sanhi ng pagsunog ng tanso sa isang abandonadong bahay,” the statement read. 

(Based on the preliminary investigation by the Bureau of Fire Protection-QC, the fire was caused by the burning of copper inside an abandoned house.) 

“Kaya naman hinihiling ng lokal na pamahalaan sa lahat na huwag magpakalat ng maling impormasyon dahil walang batayan na sinadya ang sunog.” 

(As such, the local government requests everyone to refrain from spreading misinformation, as there is no basis to claim the fire was intentional.) 

Prior to the fire, the local government had already met with the families to inform them of the assistance available as beneficiaries of the housing project in NIA. —Vince Angelo Ferreras/RF, GMA News