Short circuit anew; Fire destroys building

ILOILO CITY, Philippines — Another fire incident, the third in three days, erupted Monday evening , destroying a portion of the three-storey Sanson Building at corner Rizal and Mapa Streets at the City Proper district in Iloilo City.

And just like the previous two fire incidents in Iloilo City, the cause of fire was also electrical in nature, according to Chief Inspector Bartolome Beliran, marshal of the city's Bureau of Fire Protection.

Beliran said the BFP station received the fire call at 6:56 p.m., and responding firefighters contained the fire at 7:24 p.m., then put it off 15 minutes later.

Beliran said that while the mixed-use building is not dilapidated, it is already old. There was a ground floor, a mezzanine floor, and a second floor, which served as living quarters for the Sanson heirs. The other parts of the building were rented and used as a salon, clinic, and offices, he said.

The fire apparently originated from the ceiling of the second floor. "We're still investigating but we're looking at loose electrical connections because of the building being old," Beliran said, adding that the damage to property was estimated at P300,000.

Short circuit of electrical wiring was also the cause of the fire that hit 15 houses at Barangay dela Rama, also at the City Proper last Sunday. The same cause also triggered a fire Saturday afternoon at Jaro district in the city that razed 66 houses, Beliran added. (FREEMAN)