2 kids perish in fire

CEBU, Philippines - When Marivic Cabantog left their house to wash clothes at a nearby spring in a hilly sitio in Pinamungajan town Friday morning, southern Cebu, little did she know it would be the last time she would see two of her five children alive.

Cabantog, 22, found her seven-month-old and two-year-old daughters Irish and Janelle charred in a fire that engulfed their house in Sitio Kalubihan, Barangay Busay.

She zoomed her way from the spring to try to save her children and belongings but it was already too late.

Senior Police Officer 2 Peter Cuanso of Pinamungajan Police Station said the mother and her eldest daughter, aged 7,  went to a spring 500 meters away from home that morning to wash clothes.

While at the spring with neighbors, Cabantog was later fetched by her two other children, aged 5 and 6, who informed her that their house was on fire.

Cabantog rocketed back to their house. Unfortunately, the flames had already gobbled up their home, which was made of amakan and bamboo walls with galvanized iron as roof.

“While nanglaba ang mama, niapas ang duha ka anak sa upat kabuok nga nahabilin sa balay. Gihangak og maayo. Miingon nga nasunog daw ilahang balay. Usa sa mga kauban sa mama (Marivic) nga nanglaba nakabantay nga baga na ang aso sa ilaha dapit,” Cuanso told The FREEMAN over the phone yesterday.

No adult was home during the incident because Cabantog’s live-in partner, Pedro Papasin, 33, was in the city working as a construction worker.

Cuanso said the fire started at around 9:30 a.m. Police received report about the incident from a concerned citizen about an hour after at 10:20 a.m.

Personnel from the town’s Bureau of Fire and Protection led by Senior Fire Officer 4 Sivistri Tiro and municipal health officers responded to the alarm.

Cuanso and other personnel retrieved the burnt bodies of Janelle and Irish at 11:30 a.m. that day.

Based on their death certificates, the two died of "asphyxia secondary to smoke inhalation." They have been buried at the municipal cemetery.

Police believed that the children may have been playing with a lighter and accidentally burned pieces of clothes inside the house while their mother was away.

“Possible lighter ang giduwaan sa mga bata maong nasunog, pero wala pa namo gyud na-determine kung unsa gyud ang hinungdan kay ongoing pa man atong investigation,” Cuanso said, pegging the damage at P35,000.

For now, Cabantog and her family are temporarily staying in the house of a relative.

The family will receive financial assistance from the local government and the Department of Social Welfare and Development, although Cuanso could not yet ascertain the amount. —/JMD (FREEMAN)