Fire destroys Grand Central mall

MANILA, Philippines - A fire of still undetermined origin broke out at the Ever Gotesco Grand Central Mall in Caloocan City Friday night.

As of 7:30 p.m. last night, Al Sta. Maria, chief of the city’s public safety and traffic management department, said almost the entire mall was gutted.

“The fire rages on, no fire out yet,” he said.

Senior Fire Officer 4 Randy Resurreccion, Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) Caloocan’s intelligence and investigation chief, said mall guards discovered the fire at the ground floor at around 10:36 p.m. Friday.

City fire marshal Superintendent Oscar de Asis said the fire has reached Task Force Delta – 50 firefighting groups from all over the metropolis are already at the scene and trying to contain the blaze.

He said initial investigation showed the fire broke out from one of the shoe stalls on the ground floor of the four-story building.

De Asis said mall guards prevented the firefighters from getting into the burning mall “because we were ordered not to let anyone in.”

Mall management allegedly softened their stand yesterday and allowed arson investigators to go inside the mall.

Firefighters were initially thwarted by the thick, acrid smoke coming from the building because only a few of the volunteers had breathing devices when they rushed to the scene.

By midnight, the smoke formed a haze that stretched for a kilometer around the mall, firefighters said.

As of past 9 a.m. yesterday, thick black smoke continued to billow from the burning building. Some residents living near the complex, particularly those along Bustamante and San Die­go streets, have packed their belongings and started leaving for a safer area.

Resurreccion told The STAR the last fire that hit the mall in October 1990 lasted for nearly three days, about 52 hours, with damage placed at P500 million. Cleanup operations lasted about a week, the officer said.

BFP-Caloocan radioman FO1 Van Wendell Resurreccion said no one was reported hurt since the mall was already closed when the fire broke out.

He said firefighters were able to contain the blaze within the building and prevent it from spreading to nearby establishments.

Gerry Nazarrea, Northern Metro Manila Development Authority chief, said the road in front of the mall was occupied by firetrucks. He said only motorists coming from Manila en route to Valenzuela City were affected by the fire and were made to turn right on 5th and 8th Avenues toward B. Serrano street to Edsa.

He said operations of the Light Rail Transit went on normally as its Monumento station was not affected by the blaze. “Only the access entering the mall was closed but LRT passengers could still use the passage through the train station,” Nazarrea said.

He said immediately after the fire was detected, Mayor Enrico Echiverri directed him, the local rescue unit and the city police to help secure the building and provide assistance to possible victims.

“Fortunately, there was no reported injury and the presence of our security personnel and the police officers shooed the looters away,” Sta. Maria said.

Sta. Maria said some residents voluntarily left their homes because the heat coming from the burning building was “intolerable.”