SMC: Pandacan fire damage hits P1.2 billion

MANILA, Philippines — Conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC) said total damage caused by the fire incident early this month to its Skyway Stage 3 project and its plastics plant in Manila has reached P1.2 billion.

In a statement, SMC said the Feb. 1 fire in Pandacan that caused a section of the Skyway Stage 3 project to collapse was due to “hot work” being done by a sub-contractor atop a steel beam.

Based on the results of an investigation conducted by the Bureau of Fire Protection, SMC said the fire started on coping beam 5 of the project, where workers of a sub-contractor were conducting metal grinding and welding activities.

The results dismiss earlier initial findings that the fire originated outside the construction yard used by SMC contractor D.M. Consunji Inc., SMC said.

Apart from the Skyway, the fire also heavily damaged the facilities and properties of the Manila Plastics Plant, which is also under SMC’s packaging business.

SMC president and COO Ramon Ang, however, reassured that the company is working double time to fast-track construction and make sure that Skyway Stage 3 opens by July.

“While this is an unfortunate setback, we have moved quickly to get back on track with the construction. We are working double time to deliver the entire Skyway stage 3 project in five months’ time or by July. This is just a three-month delay from the original target date of April 2020,” Ang said.

The Skyway Stage 3, a project seen by the government as one of the major solutions to address traffic congestion at EDSA, was previously eyed to open by April.

The project was designed to eliminate choke points and provide motorists seamless connection between the north and south. It stretches from Gil Puyat Avenue in Makati and traverses through San Juan, Manila and Quezon City all the way to the North Luzon Expressway.