Baby boy missing, old woman injured in Sampaloc fire

MANILA, Philippines—A baby boy went missing and an old woman was injured after fire swept through a residential block in Manila Tuesday afternoon, a city fire officer said.

Fire Officer 3 Oliver Sison said the fire that gutted still undetermined number of houses along Sta. Teresita Street and Lacson Avenue in Sampaloc, Manila reached fifth alarm before it was completely put out at 2:28 p.m.

As of posting time, a 10-month-old baby is still missing, while an 84-year-old woman was rushed to the hospital after sustaining still several injuries, Sison said.

The distress was immediately raised to fifth alarm just seven minutes after it started at 12 noon “due to the intensity of the fire,” Sison said.

He said authorities have yet to determine the cause of fire, as well as the number of houses affected.

First posted 1:01 pm | Thursday, July 19th, 2012