Bulacao fire destroys lumberyard

CEBU, Philippines - Properties estimated to be worth around P200,000 went up in smoke when a fire destroyed a lumberyard in sitio Villa Mangga, barangay Bulacao, Cebu City yesterday morning.

The alarm was received at 8:07 a.m. and that the fire was controlled within five minutes. But the fire gutted the whole of Kimberson Lumber within two hours.

Report showed that the fire originated from the clean-dryer area of the establishment where some P50,000 board feet of Gmelina lumber (from the deciduous tree Gmelina arborea) ready for export were placed for drying. A loud explosion was reportedly heard and the next thing the residents saw was the fire and the thick smoke. The fire was raised to second alarm.

Classes in the nearby Bulacao Community School were suspended because of the thick smoke feared could suffocate the students.

Firefighters used a type of chemical to counter the thick smoke.

Further, it was learned that one of the fire trucks from Cebu City that was sent to the fire scene was reportedly not used because its water pump failed to function.

In the recent Lahug fire, it took sometime for firefighters to respond even when the fire scene was just a stone’s throw away from the fire substation at the barangay hall.

The delay was blamed on a reportedly aging fire truck that was undergoing repair. — Niña G. Sumacot/MEEV    (FREEMAN NEWS)