MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine National Police (PNP) is looking into the possible lapses of establishment owners and local officials that triggered the explosion of a firecracker warehouse in Bocaue, Bulacan last Wednesday.
Two people were killed and 24 others injured in the explosion that also gutted several nearby establishments along MacArthur Highway, Barangay Biñang 1st.
Senior Supt. Cesar Binag, chief of the PNP Firearms and Explosives Office, said investigators are checking into the records of establishments near Gina Gonzales Merchandise, where the explosion reportedly originated.
Binag said Gonzales underwent a thorough inspection and managed to meet all requirements in securing license to deal, license to manufacture and retailer’s permit.
Gonzales herself was one of the fatalities, along with Manuel Ayala, a former barangay chairman of the area where the explosion occurred.
A total of 10 commercial establishments and six vehicles, including an SUV and an Elf truck, were damaged as the fire triggered by the explosion spread through the area.
The explosions left a stretch of MacArthur Highway littered with debris, prompting Bocaue Mayor Joni Villanueva-Tugna to order the closure of the road for more than two hours.
Authorities have yet to determine what triggered the explosions.
Binag said those who would be found liable for lapses could face violation of Republic Act 7183, the law regulating the sale, manufacture, distribution and use of firecrackers and other pyrotechnic devices.
Under the law, a factory of fireworks should be 300 meters away from residential areas and a distributor is authorized to keep in its storage only 50 kilos of firecrackers and 1,000 kilos of pyrotechnics.
Binag said each retailer could keep 50 kilos of firecrackers and 500 kilos of pyrotechnics.
“More than the prescribed amount of firecrackers should be kept at their warehouse,” he added.
Binag said the implementing rules and regulations of RA 7183 states that firecrackers should be well ventilated.
“The roof of the store or warehouse should not be leaking or else the firecrackers or pyrotechnics stored there would get wet. The firecrackers should not be placed directly on the floor,” he said.
Some firecracker sellers store their wares by burying them in a deep hole on the ground. This practice prevents the firecrackers from accidentally exploding.
However, the moisture is what triggers the firecrackers to explode if stored for too long.
Gov. Wilhelmino Sy-Alvarado noted the practice of storing firecrackers, saying it was the cause of explosion of several fireworks stalls in Barangay Turo in 2003 and 2007.
Alvarado has ordered the provincial police to take over the inspection of fireworks establishments and make sure they are complying with safety provisions of the firecracker law. – With Ramon Efren Lazaro