Fire razes 600 houses in Makati, Pasay

(Update 3 - 2:00 p.m.) Fire hit a residential area at the border of Makati City on Wednesday and spread to neighboring Pasay City. A GMA Flash Report quoted officials from the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) as saying the blaze gutted around 600 houses in Pasay City. The extent of damage in Makati City has yet to be determined. The fire started in Barangay Bangkal in Makati City at about 10:30 a.m. A Victory Liner bus station and a gasoline station near the raging fare have already suspended their operations. "Sa analysis ko nasa boundary na walang kalsada sa pagitan mismo ng Pasay at Makati," said Senior Senior Superintendent Pablito Cordeta, chief of the BFP-National Capital Region. In a separate interview on radio dzMM, Cordeta said strong winds caused the fire to creep quickly toward another row of houses in Malibay village in Pasay City. The blaze has already reached general alarm and caused heavy traffic on EDSA and the South Superhighway. Firefighters from neighboring cities step in to assist when a general alarm is hoisted. Firefighters from around the area have already started pouring in but the narrow roads leading to the fire site made it difficult for fire trucks to get in.
Despite Wednesday's fire, Cordeta said the number of "index fires" or blazes that hit structures this year has gone down by 15 percent from last year’s record. Meanwhile, "burn fires" or those involving simple "electrical or grass fires" have gone up this year but these are considered "less threatening" than index fires, according to Cordeta. - Mark Dalan Merueñas/LBG/RSJ, GMANews.TV