A fire hit 29 houses in Purok Magnolia, Barangay 7, Bacolod City, at 11 p.m. Thursday, July 7, leaving many residents who fled to safety with no time to save any of their belongings.
Twenty-seven houses were destroyed and two were damaged in the fire, Chief Inspector Stephen Jardeleza, Bacolod City Fire Marshal, said.
Barangay 7 captain Hercy Cibug, said the fire spread swiftly and it was difficult for firefighters to put out the blaze because their fire trucks could not pass through the narrow pathways.
The fire trucks could only reach up to the basketball court from where firefighters dragged their hoses to the fire hit area, she said.
Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez, who was at the fire scene to ensure that residents were assisted, said many improvements need to be made to prevent similar fires from happening.
He called a meeting Friday to address the problem.
Many residents said the fire spread so fast they only had time to run away. Some residents said even their savings were burned in the fire, Cibug said.
Another family was unable to save any of their belongings as they prioritized saving their three dogs.
School teacher Kea Romero said the construction of the second floor of their house had been completed seven months ago after they obtained a P250,000 loan, which they are still paying for.
The fire destroyed their entire house.
The fire is believed to have started from the house of Richard Benjamen, the BFP said.
The most burned part was in the vicinity of Benjamen’s residence, Jardeleza said.
Benjamen’s area has no electricity but he had improvised charging devices. A big battery of a vehicle that melted in the fire was discovered, he said.
The BFP gathered evidence to be processed at the arson laboratory of the BFP national headquarters, Jardeleza said.
Benjamen denied allegations of some residents that the fire was caused by a soldering gun used for the repair of recovered scrap materials, Cibug said.
The Bureau of Fire Protection estimated the damage to all of the houses at P350,000 based on a criteria set in their operations procedure manual.
Cibug said some evacuees were staying at the Barangay 7 Day Care Center , while others were with relatives and friends.
City Social Welfare Officer Sally Abelarde said food assistance is being provided to the fire victims.
There were 66 families or about 180 individuals affected by the fire, Abelarde said.
There were also 11 house sharers and 28 renters affected, Cibug said.
A community kitchen had been set up in the area and food assistance has been delivered, Abelarde said.
Neighbors whose houses were not hit by the fire also provided food assistance to the victims.
Dr. Anna Maria Laarni M. Pornan, Bacolod Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office head, said clothes, including underwear, food, kitchenware, and construction materials are the immediate needs of the fire victims.
Among the assistance also sent by the city government were pillows, folding beds, and gallons of water.*