MANDAUE CITY – At least 700 families were displaced after a fire broke out in a heavily populated area in Barangay Tipolo here at dawn yesterday.
The fire started in Sitio Basubas at 1:18 a.m. Because most of the houses were made of light materials, the fire quickly spread to Sitio Espina and Sitio Maharlika, said SFO2 Edgar Vergara, fire investigator of the Mandaue City Fire Station.
At least 500 houses were destroyed. Fire damage was pegged at P1.3 million. Three classrooms of the Tipolo National High School and the stockroom of a brewery company were also damaged by fire.
The fire was raised to Task Force Alpha at 2:34 a.m. and was declared under control at 3:30 a.m.
It took time before the flames were contained since firefighters had a hard time reaching the fire site due to narrow roads. Fire out was declared at 9:12 a.m.
Vergara said initial investigation showed that the fire originated at the house of couple Mariano and Alma Conchas.
According to the couple, the fire started in a room on the second floor of the house. The Conchas said the room was rented by a couple who was not around when it caught fire.
An unplugged appliance or an unattended cooking may have caused the fire.
Acting city mayor Carlo Fortuna and representatives of mayor-elect Jonas Cortes visited the fire site. They agreed to hold a special session yesterday afternoon for the declaration of state of calamity in the barangay.
Jessie Perez, head of the Mandaue City Social Welfare Services (CSWS) office, the number of affected families may still increase as they had yet to complete the data.
Perez said each family whose house was razed will receive P10,000. Owners of “partially damaged” houses and renters will receive P5,000 each.
Displaced families were evacuated to the compound of the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC). (Calvin Cordova)
