MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) has concluded that the Waterfront Manila Pavilion Hotel and Casino fire last March 18 that claimed the lives of six Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (PAGCOR) employees was “purely accidental due to faulty electrical wiring” and deemed the investigation closed.
In a document obtained by The STAR, The BFP stated that the cause of the fire was attributed to “high-temperature electric discharge of a wiring inside the ceiling near the slot machine area, which resulted in short circuit accompanied by massive electrical ignition.”
“As per analysis, the causative factor of the detected electrical fault was correlative to damage or error brought (about) by prolonged usage and normal wear and tear of the conductive material of the electrical wiring,” the document said.
The three-page document dated April 23 was signed by BFP chief Director Leonard Banago.
Another document gathered by The STAR was the Property Recovery and Clearing Permit issued by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to Waterfront engineering director Ferdinand Vincent Lazaro allowing the hotel to recover burned and water damaged items inside the premises.
“After the methodical investigation and technical and forensic analysis conducted at the scene of the crime, it was determined that the fire originated at the ground floor occupied by PAGCOR,” the BFP report said.
The BFP eliminated other probable causes of the fire such as appliances, industrial machinery overheating, mechanical sparks, open flames and frictions “as these hazards did not exist in the area at the time the incident occurred.”
The statement doused earlier reports that the fire was caused by welding works on the second floor of the hotel.