House left empty during Taal evacuation catches fire in Batangas town

CALACA, Batangas-A house left empty after its owners fled Taal Volcano’s rage caught fire in Lemery town, Batangas province on Thursday (Jan. 23).

The Inquirer saw two firetrucks on their way to the danger zone, currently under a government lockdown.

Initial police reports said the fire started around 7 p.m. at one house at the village of Ayao-Iyao.

Lemery police chief Maj. Garman Manabat, in a phone interview, said firefighters have put out about “95 percent” of the fire, as of 7:30 p.m. on Thirsday.

Authorities have yet to determine what caused it, as power supply in the entire town had been out since Taal’s eruption last Jan. 12.

Manabat said the house owner had gone back to the house in the afternoon despite policemen keeping residents out of the hazard zones, “and may have left something” that caused the fire.

Batangas police have set up several checkpoints to prevent people from returning while Alert Level 4 remained in place.

Edited by TSB