A one-year-old girl died after a fire gutted her family’s home in Barangay Mayombo, Dagupan City, afternoon on Wednesday, October 15, 2025.

The child’s grandmother, Liza Egipto, said the fire started when the ceiling fan in her daughter’s room exploded suddenly while she was in the bathroom.

“Kumalat na agad yung apoy, biglaan. Yung anak ko nasa loob, nagsisigaw na siya. Yung apo ko na kalalabas na galing naligo, tumakbo palang pumasok. Di napansin ng anak ko kaya lumabas siya, hinanap niya agad yung anak niya. Umiyak sa loob, bumalik yung anak ko, ang laki-laki ng apoy,” Egipto said.

Fire investigators said the fan’s proximity to clothes and other fabric caused the flames to spread quickly.

“Yung ceiling fan kasi na ‘yun is malapit sa mga damit, tela, so yun yung cause. So nagkaroon ng ignition, tinamaan yung mga tela doon,” Fire Chief Inspector Jun Eland Wanawan, fire marshal of the Dagupan City Fire Station, said.

Egipto’s daughter rushed back inside the burning house to save her child, carrying the toddler out while both were engulfed in flames.

The two were brought to a hospital nearby, but the child suffered burns covering about 80 percent of her body and died later early morning on Wednesday, October 16. As of this writing, her mother remains confined, recuperating with third-degree burns.

“Mahal na mahal ko po mga apo ko, ma’am. Sobrang mahal ko po sila kaya lagi kong pinagpa-pray na humaba pa yung buhay ko para magabayan ko pa sila,” Egipto said.

The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) reminded the public to use electrical appliances safely and avoid overloading extension cords.

“Paulit-ulit natin sinasabi na iwasan natin as much as possible na gumamit ng mga extension wires. Intended for temporary connection lang kasi ‘yan, hindi siya permanent,” Wanawan said.