Off-duty fireman lauded for reporting blaze

MANILA, Philippines – If it hadn’t been for a firefighter who just happened to pass by the site, it would have taken more time for other firemen to learn about a fire, which razed a garments factory in Valenzuela City on Saturday morning.

The Valenzuela fire department said that one of its firefighters, FO2 Patrick Salazar, reported the blaze that swept through Megafield Garments Inc. factory owned by Samuel Ty on Industrial Road in Barangay Karuhatan.

No one was killed or injured in the incident.

Salazar was jogging in the area around 7 a.m. on Saturday when he spotted thick and black smoke coming from one of the factories nearby. He then reported the situation to the Valenzuela City Central Fire Station which initially dispatched a fire truck to the scene.

All of the city’s fire trucks, however, were dispatched to the area after the blaze quickly spread throughout the garments and textiles factory, leading to the raising of the third alarm.

The fire was eventually put out nearly two hours after it was first reported.

Initial investigation showed that the blaze started in the ceiling of the building but the cause has yet to be determined. The fire department has also yet to release the estimated cost of damage to property. Mark Ersan D. Ate, Nathaniel R. Melican

UP Diliman offers midyear term from June-July

QUEZON CITY, Philippines – The University of the Philippines will be offering a midyear term on its Diliman, Quezon City, campus following the decision to move the school opening to August instead of June.

According to the UP website, the midyear term will begin on June 4 and end on July 8. Final exams will be held on July 10 and 11 as specified in the schedule approved by UP president Alfredo Pascual.

This will be the second short-term session for this year, aside from regular summer classes. The schedule for the midyear term will follow that of summer classes with students meeting two hours daily for 24 days.

Under the new UP academic calendar, classes will begin in August and end in May. The midyear term will be offered in all units in UP Diliman except for the Masters in Business Administration and MS Finance programs, the Masters in Management program of the UP extension programs in Pampanga and Olongapo, and the Spring-ASIA program of the School of Urban and Regional Planning. Julie M. Aurelio