By Hans Amancio
Three people were injured in a fire that broke out yesterday in the Land Management Bureau (LMB) building and spread to other structures, including the Juan Luna Building which houses the National Archives of the Philippines, in Binondo, Manila.
The massive fire started at around 12:36 a.m. on the 7th floor of the LMB building in Plaza Cervantes, Binondo. It was raised to the 5th alarm bat1:02 a.m., officials of the Manila Fire District said.
The fire then crawled to adjacent buildings namely the Bank of the Philippine Islands building, Moraga Mansion building up to the National Archives of the Philippines.
Fire marshals PO1 Jersey Lopez, 25, Jefrey Geron, 26 and Marlou Alonzo, 18, of the Bureau of Fire Protection, sustained lacerations and minor injuries during the fire. They were reportedly in a stable condition.
According to the National Commission of Culture and Arts, the National Archives holds “60,000,000 archival documents with Spanish Collection comprising an estimated 13,000,000 manuscripts from the 16th to 19th Century with 400 titles on various aspects of Philippine history under Spanish rule”.
However, Jocelyn Reyes, officer-in-charge Deputy Executive Director of the National Archives of the Philippines assured that no important documents have been destroyed since the archives are kept at the National Library of the Philippines in Ermita, Manila.
The National Commission on Culture and Arts (NCCA) has confirmed Reyes’ statement regarding the status of the archives.
