300 families homeless in Quezon City fire

MANILA, Philippines — At least 300 families were left homeless after a fire hit a shantytown in Quezon City on Friday.

The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP)’s National Capital Region field office said the fire started at around 5:05 a.m. and reached second alarm.

Chief Inspector Marvin Mari, the Quezon City fire district’s chief operations officer, said the fire originated on the third floor of a shanty along 1st Camarilla street in Barangay San Roque.

“The flames spread quickly because the houses were made of light materials,” Mari said in an interview over GMA News.

Arson investigators have yet to determine the cause of the fire, which destroyed an undetermined number of houses.

A staff at the barangay hall said in a phone interview that over 300 families were displaced in the fire. They were relocated to an evacuation center.

Classes were suspended at the Camarilla Elementary School, Dona Josefa Elementary School and Aguinaldo Elementary School, which were near the area of the fire.

Firefighters were able to douse the fire at 7:43 a.m., the BFP said.

The barangay hall staff said they have not received any report of people who were injured in the fire.

The BFP said 18 fire trucks responded to the scene.