CEBU, Philippines - Ninety-eight families were displaced by the fire that gutted almost 40 houses in a slum area in Barangay Tinago, Cebu City, the other day.
As the fire victims were relocated to their temporary shelters, fire investigators pegged the damage at between P150,000 up to P1 million.
Cebu City fire marshal Esmael Codilla said they are still investigating the cause of the fire though there were reports yesterday that the fire stated in the house of a barangay tanod identified as Mario Nuez.
According to some residents, Nuez’ kids were playing with matches and set some combustible materials on fire and triggered the blaze.
But another resident also claimed that the fire started from the house of a certain Mila Dosdos who allegedly left an appliance switched on while nobody was inside her house.
This tragedy brought another one when a two-year-old boy was run over by a prime mover that was trying to avoid the traffic jam in Barangay San Roque brought about by the fire.
Jorlan Delan did not make it alive to the hospital, his siblings, Jasmine, seven and Jeralyn, five, were also injured after being hit by the vehicle.
The victims were reportedly on their way to the fire scene to check what was happening when the accident happened shortly before 5 p.m.
The fire was reportedly so huge that aside from Cebu City firemen, it took firefighters from neighboring cities to respond to the area.
With the cooperation of the neighboring fire stations, the fire was raised to the Task Force Alpha. It was controlled 40 minutes later despite problems like narrow pathways and the huge crowd of kibitzers and people rushing to save their belongings.
Meanwhile, the fire victims in Barangay Tinago continue to receive relief from the city government through the Department of Social Welfare and Services.
Since the fire broke out last Wednesday, victims were provided with meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner which the DSWS will continue to provide until the evening of today. It is a standard operating procedure of the City Disaster Coordinating Council to provide fire victims food assistance for three days after the incident.
Also today, the DSWS is also set to distribute relief goods such as rice, canned goods, kitchen utensils and other items that are used everyday. Tents will also be provided to the homeowners identified by the DSWS during their survey.
Of the affected families, 32 are homeowners, 32 are tenants, 34 are house sharers while five individuals are lodgers. Only the homeowners will be provided tents, said Lucia Mahusay, social welfare and DSWS officer-in-charge.
The city will also be providing construction materials to homeowners after a month. Mahusay said that it will take that long because the purchase of the construction materials have to undergo a process that includes a request for allocation of funds and bidding. (FREEMAN NEWS)