2 hurt as fire destroys 30 homes in Cebu City

CEBU CITY, Philippines—Two persons were injured as at least 50 families were displaced when fire destroyed or damaged about 30 houses in Barangay Guadalupe, Cebu City, before noon Saturday, the authorities said.

Vincent Mañigo suffered third-degree burns when he went back to his house that was already engulfed in flames in an attempt to save his belongings. He was taken to the Cebu City Medical Center but hospital staffers declined to talk about his condition.

Another resident, Nestor delos Arcos, suffered a cut on the  right leg caused by broken glass, said Fire Officer 2 Rudipher Comeros.

Cebu City Fire Marshall Aderson Comar said they were still looking into the cause of the fire, which started in the home of Victor and Era Pantoñal.

Pantoñal told Inquirer that he and his wife were not home when the blaze broke out at 10:35 a.m. But a neighbor told him that they saw a spark on the roof of his house followed by a burst of flame.

Bryan Baoy, 14, said he was playing outside when he heard some unusual sounds from Pantoñal’s house before the fire broke out.

F02 Comeros said the fire might have been caused by an electrical short circuit.

The fire spread to other houses before it was placed under control 26 minutes later. The fire trucks had difficulty getting to the scene because the roads were narrow and downhill.

Damage to property was initially estimated at P300,000.

Guadalupe barangay captain Michael Gacasan said the fire victims will be temporarily housed in the  Banawa Elementry School.

Some displaced families will occupy vacant classrooms while others will be put up in tents on the school grounds.

Gacasan expressed apprehension that the fire victims may not be able to rebuild their houses since they didn’t own the land.

“I will try to talk and convince the land owner to allow the fire victims to rebuild their houses in the area,” Gacasan said.

Originally posted at 2:35 p.m.