100 Malabon families lose homes in fire

Only days after a fire gutted hundreds of houses in San Juan City on Christmas Day, another one broke out in a slum area, this time in Malabon City, leaving around 100 families homeless for the New Year.

Chief Insp. Rodrigo Reyes, Malabon fire marshal, said the blaze that broke out at 1:51 a.m. in the house of Nonilon Aljas on Dulong Bronze Street in Barangay (village) Tugatog also left two people injured—Edgar Tan and Fernando Briones Gonzales, 49.

According to Fire Officer 1 Kirby Banglos, one of those who rushed to the scene, Tan had been drinking the night before and awoke to find his house being engulfed by flames. He sustained second-degree burns in the face.

Gonzales, meanwhile, was electrocuted while he was helping authorities during mopping up operations.

Around 50 houses were destroyed by the fire that reached the fourth alarm while damage to property was estimated at P600,000.

While the cause of fire has yet to be determined, Reyes said it was possible the blaze was caused by an unattended lit candle.

Aljas’ house was empty when the blaze started, he added.

According to Reyes, the flames spread quickly to adjacent structures since these were all made of light materials.

Aside from this, authorities found it difficult to reach the area because of the narrow streets, he said. “We had to use really long hoses,” he told the Inquirer.

He added it was a good thing there was a partition between the group of burnt houses and a dump in the area.

If it were not for the partition, the fire maight have become bigger because of the methane emitted by trash, Reyes said.

The fire was declared out at 5:10 a.m.

Banglos said the fire victims were staying at a covered court in the Acacia area.