Fire incidents down in March

The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) has reported a 6.5-percent decrease in fire incidents last month, which was declared as the Fire Prevention Month.

The BFP said only 1,251 fire incidents were reported nationwide as compared to the 1,338 fire occurrences in the same period last year.

BFP officer-in-charge Chief Superintendent Rogelio Asignado attributed the decline to the bureau’s continuous inspection and monitoring of establishments and residences for possible violations of fire safety regulations, fire awareness campaign, and the alertness and vigilance of firemen during fire occurrences.

However, 26 persons were killed and 48 others were injured in fire incidents last March.

According to the BFP, the National Capital Region (NCR) had the most number of fire incidents with 565, followed by Region 4-A with 222, and Region 6 with 71. The Ilocos and Eastern Visayas Regions, on the other hand, had only one fire incident each for the whole month of March.

As for the amount of estimated damages, Central Luzon lost P131 million to fire incidents while the NCR and Western Visayas lost P81 million and P49 million, respectively.