BFP told to inspect fire-struck PGH’s electrical system

Firefighters respond to a fire that broke out last week at the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) in Manila.  (INQUIRER / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE)

MANILA, Philippines — Interior and Local Government Secretary Benhur Abalos Jr. ordered the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) to conduct a “comprehensive electrical system inspection” at the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) to prevent the recurrence of fire in the government tertiary hospital.

In a statement on Tuesday, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said that Abalos made the order on Monday after he visited the patients and staff affected by the fire that broke out in the PGH last Wednesday, March 13.

The DILG said that Abalos instructed BFP National Capital Region Regional Director Nahum Tarroza to initiate the inspection.

“Nag-usap kami ni Regional Director Nahum at Dr. Legaspi ng PGH, magtutulungan po, ipapacheck lahat ng kuryente upang maiwasan po lahat ito,” Abalos said, referring to PGH Director Dr. Gerardo Legaspi.

(We talked with Regional Director Nahum and Dr. Legaspi of PGH, we will cooperate, all electrical connections will be checked to prevent all of this.)

Abalos also commended the hospital staff for their quick response and preparedness which resulted in the safety of 896 patients and personnel, the DILG said.

“I would like to congratulate PGH, alam n’yo ba in just 15 minutes kaagad nilang nailikas ang mga tao. Ibig sabihin may system sila at may fire drill sila. Napakaganda ng ginawa nila,” he said.

(I would like to congratulate PGH. Did you know that they were able to evacuate people in just 15 minutes? This means they have a system in place and conduct fire drills. What they did was excellent.)

The fire, which started at the PGH medicine ward, was raised to the first alarm at 3:08 p.m.

It quickly escalated to the second alarm three minutes later before it was declared under control at 3:45 p.m.

The BFP extinguished the fire at 4:30 p.m.

While the cause of the fire is still under investigation, the BFP said in the DILG statement that it could have been caused by defective electrical wiring.