2 kids die in Sta. Cruz fire

A fire reportedly caused by an overheated electric fan razed an apartment unit in Sta. Cruz, Manila, early yesterday morning, killing two young children and injuring another.

Reports identified the fatalities as siblings Tasha, 5; and Paulo Chua, 2. Injured was their elder brother Howard Chua, 7. Two other members of the household, the children’s father, Peter, and their nanny, Maryann Tusoy, managed to escape along with Howard.

According to reports, the children, their father and Tusoy were fast asleep inside unit 702 of the Orient Star Apartments at the corner of Masangkay and Soler streets at about 3:19 a.m. when the fire started in the children’s bedroom.

Seeing the thick smoke and flames already filling the apartment, Tusoy immediately went to Howard’s room and carried him out to safety.

At about the same time, the children’s father, who was reportedly a stroke victim, also managed to get out.

Tusoy, however, could no longer return to the burning apartment to rescue her two other wards who were trapped by the smoke and flames.

Probers said Howard sustained slight burns in his arms and legs and was rushed to the Metropolitan Hospital in Binondo for treatment.

Firefighters managed to contain and extinguish the fire at about 3:47 a.m. Damage caused by the blaze was placed at around P250,000. – Mike Frialde