Belmonte vows aid for fire victims

MANILA, Philippines - Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr. said yesterday the Quezon City government will provide immediate assistance to thousands of families left homeless by a fire that tore through a crowded community along E. Rodriguez Avenue Sunday.

He said the government will provide portalets, clothes and food for the families. Belmonte said the city government will conduct a census of those who were rendered homeless by the fire.

“We want the assistance to go to the real victims,” he said.

Resident Reynaldo Gayo said Belmonte has been sending food since Sunday night and provided them with portalets.

Sunday’s blaze, likely started by a faulty power line, raged for more than seven hours and destroyed hundreds of homes. Property damage was initially pegged at around P10 million.

Belmonte’s aide Obet Madarang said Andres Dinamico was confirmed to have died of smoke inhalation, while four others were injured.

The Quezon City Red Cross said they treated over 100 persons for minor injuries, mostly lacerations and minor burns.

Madarang said 2,600 families, equating to about 15,000 people, had lost their homes and were now in desperate need of relief assistance.

“We have enough food but we are lacking drinking water and portable toilets,” Madarang told AFP as a huge line of people queued up for assistance close to the charred remains of their houses.

Madarang said illegal power lines that slum dwellers

 typically set up were the likely cause of the fire.

“A lot of people are illegally tapping the power lines. That was also believed to have been the cause of the last fire here six years ago,” he said.

Madarang said the death toll from the fire was relatively low because it broke out in the afternoon, when everyone was awake and able to evacuate.

“If it had happened at night, many people would have died,” he said.