Fire guts houses in flooded village in Cagayan de Oro

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—The houses of the Sarifada and Mamalu families here have survived the devastating floods but they did not stand a chance against a fire that broke out Tuesday evening.

Chief Insp. Ceriaco Taliner, officer in charge of the Cagayan de Oro Fire Department, said investigators were still trying to determine what had triggered the fire that gutted the houses of Abdul Gafar Sarifada and his neighbor Fatima Mamalu in Villa Angela in Barangay Balulang.

Abdullah Tahir, a neighbor of the two fire victims, said they were clearing their houses of mud and debris on Tuesday evening when the fire started at the house of Sarifada.

Sarifada had not returned to his house since Saturday’s devastating deluge and Mamalu was at the Cogon public market, some 15 kilometers away, to buy food.

No one was inside the houses when the fire broke out, he said.

Talines said the city’s fire department had quickly responded to the fire alarm but fire engines were slowed down by mud that covered the road.

Tahir said they could not do anything to save the houses as there was still no water in the subdivision, three days after the floods cut off supply.

“The fire quickly spread to Mamalu’s house since there was no water to use to stop the fire,” he said. Bobby Lagsa and Ryan Rosauro, Inquirer Mindanao