Fire hits SM Mall of Asia in Pasay; no injuries reported

(Updated 12:10 p.m.) A fire of still unkown origin hit a portion of the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City on Friday morning, but was immediately put under control by firefighters. No one was reported hurt in the fire. The Association of Fire Volunteers, Fire Chiefs and Firefighters of the Philippines, Inc. said it received a report about the mall fire around 11 a.m. and was immediately confirmed by its field personnel. Firefighters declared the fire under control at 11:31 a.m., the group said, adding that no casualties were reported in the mall fire. The SM Mall of Asia, which opened in May 2006, is touted as the largest shopping mall in the country and the third in the world in terms of gross leaseable area. In its report, dzMM radio quoted Pasay City District Fire Marshall Sofia Mendoza as saying that the fire hit the mall's SM Hypermarket, located inside the mall's North Parking building. The blaze reached the second alarm before firefighters were able to declare a fire under control, the report said. It noted that fire officials have yet to determine the cause of the fire. Clearing operations by the Bureau of Fire Protection continues as of this posting. - GMANews.TV