Fire destroys 40 shanties in Makati City; over 100 families homeless

MANILA, Philippines — An hour-long fire engulfed around 40 shanties in Makati City on Sunday night, leaving a hundred families homeless, fire official said.

No one was reported injured in the blaze, which started at 9:41 p.m. from a two-floor house of a certain Antonio Lagarde on D. Gomez Street in Barangay (village) Tejeros, Makati City, a few blocks from the Circuit Makati on the former Sta. Ana Racetrack property of the Philippine Racing Club Inc.

Makati fire marshal Ricardo Perdigon said the houses were mostly made of light and combustible materials so the fire quickly spread.

Residents scrambled to get out of the fire’s way and save a few valuables, the fire marshal said.

The fire reached fifth alarm, prompting the Makati’s Bureau of Fire Protection to call all its fire trucks before firefighters managed to extinguish it at 10:37 p.m.

Perdigon said it was fortunate that the fire did not happen in the wee hours of the night when the residents were sleeping.

Makati arson investigators have yet to estimate the property losses from the fire while its cause is still under investigation.

Investigators, however, suspected that an unattended burning candle had ignited the fire as some houses in the area had no power connections.