Around 150 families were left homeless after a fire razed a residential and market area in Pasig City on Thursday.
At least four people required medical attention due to the fire that started in one of homes on Blumentrit Street in Barangay Kapasigan, officials said. Damage to property was estimated at P3 million.
Senior Insp. Senior Insp Jerson Montellana, investigation division chief of the Bureau of Fire Protection-Pasig, said the cause of the fire remained under investigation but pointed to the house of Daisy Mainit as the place where it reportedly started at 9:48 a.m.
The BFP received initial reports that Mainit was then cooking rice but left the stove unattended when she went out to buy something at the store, he added.
The fire reached the fourth alarm level — with at least eight fire trucks and 32 firefighters responding — and was declared out at 11:35 a.m., the BFP official said.
No serious injuries were reported. A local Philippine Red Cross official said Relea Catacutan, 21, had to receive medical attention after experiencing difficulty in breathing, while Maxetter Alcantara, 22; Victoria Bispera, 64; and Erning Sales, 67, complained of dizziness.
The fire damaged at least 30 homes and a portion of the old Pasig public market. The affected area is also near the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Pasig.