Fire razes 110 houses in Manila, injures 4; child missing

(Updated 5:02 p.m.) MANILA, Philippines - A fire destroyed 110 houses in Paco, Manila, and injured a fire official and three residents before firefighters were able to put it out at about 1:26 p.m. on Monday. A child was also reported missing. The fire broke out at about 11:15 a.m. at the two-story house of Lorenzo Tala at Interior 45, Gomez St., according to Senior Fire Officer 2 Emmanuel Gaspar of the Manila Fire Department. The fire immediately engulfed the house and spread toward the adjacent houses. Injured during the blaze were Inspector Reggie Almedo, fire station commander of the Sampaloc fire station; Jason Chavez, 32, of Gomez Street; Ramon Magno, 47, of Kahilum Street; and Emily Ballanes, 47, of Gomez Street. Ballanes was smothered by the smoke. Almedo got a scrape in the left shoulder while helping put out the fire. Chavez got a scrape in the left eyebrow and Magno got a puncture wound in the right knee. The fire reached Task Force Delta at 12:35 p.m. Firemen put the fire under control at 1 p.m. and put it out at 1:26 p.m. Investigators said they got reports that the fire started at the ground floor of the Tala house where someone was cooking using firewood. But arson investigators are also eyeing illegal electrical connections as the cause of the fire, according to a an earlier report by Carlo Mateo aired over radio dzBB. The same report said the fire destroyed 50 houses and put the property damage at P3 million. But according to later estimates, the fire destroyed 110 houses, with property damage at P5.5 million. Acting Manila fire marshal Superintendent Felixberto Abrenica said firefighters had a hard time getting to the source of the fire, which which was near a high school and an orphanage, because of the narrow streets and congested residential area. He said probers are now verifying information that some families in the area had illegal electric connections. He noted many of the houses in the area were made of light materials. Residents tried to save their belongings, while some of the men stayed behind and formed a water brigade to try and stop the fire. - GMANews.TV