239 homes lost in 2 city fires

CEBU, Philippines - A total of 434 families were left homeless after a fire destroyed 239 houses in Barangay Basak-Pardo, Cebu City, and Barangay Paknaan, Mandaue City, yesterday.

In Barangay Basak-Pardo, 204 houses were destroyed while a firefighter was hurt after a fire sitios Ulap and Laguna yesterday morning. In all 304 families made up of 1,383 individuals were left homeless.

Cebu City Fire Marshal Rogelio Bongabong Jr., said that the alarm was received by the Cebu City Fire Station at 9:50 a.m. yesterday.

The fire allegedly started from the second floor in the house of Sophea Valdizamo and spread to neighboring houses mostly made of light materials.   Miguel Descartin, a resident of the area, said that he was coming home from work when his teenage daughter alerted him that their two-story house was on fire. He said they were only able to save a few belongings.

“Mao pay pag-abot nako gitawagan kos bata gud, kani dos andanas naugdaw gyud, ambot lang kaha kani man sila nahibilin gamay ray nakuha,” Descartin said.

Although there was a fire hydrant in front of their house it has long been out of commission, he said.

Rosemarie Paglinawan, who has lived in the area for 18 years, said she was only able to save her children’s birth certificates and their television set.

“Kanang gakayo amoa na, wala gyud mi nasalba. Akong gi-una natawhan ra’s mga bata ug TV kay kung magkuha kos akong sinina ako ra man usa,” Paglinawan said. She added if there had been an access road fire fighters would have put out the fire immediately.

“Kung naa pa’y dalan dali ra unta kay wala may nakalusot nga bombero gud,” she added.

Rubel Reyes, 32, whose house was spared by the fire, said he heard stories from his neighbor that a three-year-old child was seen playing with a match or a lighter before the fire. Investigators have yet to confirm what started the fire but said three other people told them the same story.

The fire was declared under control at 11:05 a.m. One firefighter was injured in the foot while combating the blaze.

Over 10 fire trucks entered the University of San Jose-Recoletos Basak Campus to spray water on burning houses next to the soccer field where the Boy Scouts were camping. Some of the fire fighters even climbed the roof of the covered walk to reach the fire scene.  The fire victims are now being sheltered at the Don Vicente Rama Memorial National High School. The city will provide electricity, health and sanitation and crowd control.

Doctors and nurses were also deployed to the area while personnel of the Department of Social Welfare and Services have started distributing water and relief goods like rice, canned goods and packed meals, among others.

Mandaue fire

Yesterday afternoon sitios Batong, Talong and Camansi in Barangay Paknaan, Mandaue City, were also hit by a fire. An estimated 130 families lost their homes.

Senior Fire Officer 1 Cipriano Codilla yesterday said that they received the fire alarm at 3 p.m. yesterday and arrived at the area a few minutes later. It took them around 30 minutes to control the fire that destroyed 30 houses in Batong and five in Talong. Three houses were damaged in Camansi.

 The narrow roads leading the burning houses and the people who thronged them to save their belongings stopped firefighters from reaching the fire scene. In the end the fire trucks were positioned at Plaridel Street and firefighters had to link hoses to penetrate some 60 meters to the interior portion.

Only small fire trucks owned by private companies were able to penetrate the fire scene.

Codilla said that their initial investigation revealed that the fire started in the ceiling of the house owned by Rhona Vi Zamora who was not around at the time. Her neighbors were able to save her two children who were sleeping when the fire broke out.

Mandaue City Fire Marshall Senior Inspector Joel Abarquez said that before the said alarm they just came from the fire in Basak-Pardo, Cebu City. While loading their tanker truck, a grass fire broke at the Mandaue Reclamation Area near Cebu International Convention Center. Passing motorists were reporting zero visibility due to the thick smoke.

 A few minutes after returning to the station from the grass fire they again received the fire alarm in Paknaan.

With yesterday’s fire Paknaan Barangay Captain Melaquias Soco said the barangay will find ways to widen the narrow road in the affected areas and request the fire department to install fire hydrants in the area.

The victims are now housed in tents near the area as well as the barangay gym. Damage caused by fire in the three zones was pegged at P1.1 million.

No rebuilding yet

Those who lost their homes in the Basak-Pardo fire will not be allowed to rebuild their houses until reblocking is done.  Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella said there is a dire need to put an end to the perennial problem of narrow roads in residential areas.

“The incident highlighted the compelling need to reblock. More than ever, there should be reblocking before they will allow to return and rebuild their houses,” he said in a press conference.  Labella, who rushed to the fire scene, said firefighters had a hard time responding to the fire due to the constricted passageways.

“What really aggravated the incident was the very narrow road. We can’t allow such incidents to occur again. We have to aid this,” he said.  DSWS, in collaboration with the barangay, is currently assessing and evaluating those who can avail of financial assistance.   Those whose houses were destroyed will receive P10,000 each while those whose houses were damaged get P5,000.

The lot where the fire broke is privately-owned.  Labella said there are ongoing negotiations to purchase the properties for socialized housing. If the negotiation is successful, some fire victims may soon own the lots they lived on.  “No one should be dislocated by reason of the fire,” Labella said. —/BRP (FREEMAN)