Firefighters had difficulty putting out the fire that hit Purok Tangkong, Barangay 7 in Bacolod City, on Saturday night, because residents had built houses on road lots, Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said on Monday, September 11.
The fire destroyed 38 houses and damaged two affecting 66 families with 331 members.
The residents whose houses were located on the road lots will be transferred to the city relocation site, mayor said.
The other houses were squatting on private land and will also have to relocate, he said.
Those whose houses were destroyed will be given financial assistance of P15,000 each, and P10,000 each for those damaged, he said.
The fire victims are currently staying at the Villamonte gym and will be given enough time to rebuild in areas where they will relocate, Benitez said.
This is why the city government is building Yuhum housing villages so informal settlers will have places they will be happy to relocate to, Benitez said.
The Bureau of Fire Protection has identified “a hundred plus communities in Bacolod that are in danger” because of lack of pathways for fire trucks to enter if they are hit by fire, Benitez said.
Most of the residents of the communities tagged as red zones or critical areas are informal settlers who do not comply with the building code, he said.
The mayor said the city government and the BFP will conduct orientations in the barangays on how to address the problem, Benitez said.*