A fire broke out at a restaurant on Rizal Avenue Extension in Barangay Sta. Clara, Batangas, morning on January 26, 2024.

The Batangas City Fire Department whose substation is located right in front of the restaurant, placed the fire under control after an hour at 8 a.m. 

No injuries were reported and flames were contained within the structure.

"Hindi naman mahirap 'yung access sa response kasi kung makikita natin katabi lang naman [nila] yung ating substation, it just so happened na siguro dahil nga sa light materials 'yung ating establishment, mabilis siyang kinain ng apoy," FCInsp. Joseph Asi, the City Fire Marshal, said.

"Nagta-traffic po ako sa gitna, tapos may nagturo na lang po sa akin na may umuusok na nga [yung building], nu'ng tingnan ko nga po malakas na ang usok, tumawag na ako ng bumbero and then naglagablab na, dire-diretso na po 'yun. Mabilis lang po siyang natupok talaga," Frederick Delgado, a traffic enforcer, said.

Investigation is ongoing as of this writing, with the kitchen identified as the point of origin.

"Yung cause of fire [ay] still under investigation. ‘Yun 'yung ginagawa ng ating investigator para ma-determine agad kung saan para malaman kung anong cause ng fire incident," Asi said.

Authorities encouraged residents and business owners to participate in seminars and drills to raise awareness about fire safety measures.

"Magkaroon ng mga seminars and drills para aware sila kung ano ang mga dapat pag-ingatan at ano ang dapat gawin kasi laging ganun [nangyayari]. ‘Prevention is better than cure,’ yun ang maganda kapag aware ka sa fire safety, mape-prevent mo na 'yung sunog," Asi said.