Mandaluyong fire leaves 1 dead, 350 families homeless

MANILA, Philippines — A woman died and at least 350 families were left homeless after another fire hit Barangay Addition Hills in Mandaluyong City yesterday, the second to hit the slum community in a week.

City fire marshal Superintendent Jose Callos Jr. said the charred corpse of Milagrosa Taon was found by firefighters during clearing operations at the scene of the fire.

Callos said around 200 houses along Correctional Road were destroyed by the fire, which started at around 2:59 a.m.

“The fire started in a house at the innermost portion of the community,” he said in a phone interview.

At around 3:53 a.m., the city fire bureau raised the alarm to Task Force Bravo, which means all available fire trucks are needed at the scene.

Firefighters doused the fire at around 5:43 a.m. There were no other casualties while the estimated cost of damage to property was placed at P500,000.

Callos said an investigation is ongoing to determine what caused the blaze.

It is the second fire to hit the 120-hectare Addition Hills in a span of a week.

A resident was arrested on a charge of arson last Monday for allegedly causing the fire that left over 1,000 families homeless. He was reportedly seen setting fire to a tarpaulin in his unit on the second floor of a residential building.

Addition Hills is also the epicenter of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak in Mandaluyong, where it has 131 of the 720 cases in the city.

Jimmy Isidro, city public information officer, said the displaced were relocated to a gymnasium and a public school, where tents have been put up to ensure physical distancing to prevent the spread of COVID-19.