Empty fire extinguishers killed 2 DPWH officials?

Empty fire extinguishers, rubbish, and other junk materials may have caused the death of two Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) executives at its National Capital Region (NCR) office in Manila last Sunday.

An incident report prepared by DPWH-NCR security men assigned to the gutted wooden two-story Rural Infrastructure Fund building in the DPWH-NCR’s motorpool compound, said they "attempted to use the fire extinguishers placed at the motorpool area but (they) were found empty".

Security Officer Elgen Delos Reyes, the detachment supervisor, signed the report obtained by The STAR.

"That time the place seemed like an inferno as old files, papers, and damaged office tables, chairs, dividers, lockers, cabinets etc. stocked at the said building were easily gutted by fire. (The fire spread) so fast that in a matter of minutes the whole building and part of the adjacent canteen were burned down," said the report.

Killed in the fire were architect Marion Monge, about 43 years old, and engineer Marcos Leo Dacara, 35, both of the Iriga City, regional office of DPWH in Bicol.

DPWH-NCR director Salvador Pleyto said the two were sleeping in the building after attending a seminar.

The security officials also said that they could not get near the origin of the fire, a room on the second floor, as another door leading to it was locked.

The security men said they immediately transferred the vehicles under repair at the motorpool as well as the oxy-acetylene tanks to prevent them from exploding and causing bigger damage.

DPWH-NCR district engineer Ed Dimaculangan estimated the cost of the burned two-story building alone at P5 million.

The DPWH is yet to come out with the damage estimate to the three gutted DPWH service vans, a Cherokee jeep, a stainless jeep, power generator, and the neighboring canteen.

Dimaculangan, however, said the three service vans are virtually valueless as they were no longer running.

The blaze raged from 2 a.m. to 4 a.m. and reached the fifth alarm level. There were signs that the two victims attempted to escape the fire but were apparently trapped. They were burned beyond recognition.

The cause of the fire is still being investigated by the Manila fire department.