Bacolod fire displaces 855 persons

Firefighters on Friday, September 12, 2025, morning continue to douse the embers of a fire that struck a densely populated community in Barangay 27, Bacolod City, at 12:09 a.m. and destroyed or damaged 212 houses and displaced close to 900 residents. PHOTOS BY ANDREW ALTEREJOS

BACOLOD CITY — A three-hour fire that struck a populated neighborhood in this city past midnight today affected at least 212 houses and displaced at least 855 persons, fire authorities here reported.

The fire began at 12:09 a.m. in Purok (subvillage) Cheriza of Barangay (village) 27 and quickly spread, destroying 180 houses and damaging 36 others, according to Bacolod Fire Marshall Jenny May Masip.

She said their initial findings showed that the fire was caused by an “electrical ignition,” as electricity was being tapped from a neighbor’s house.

Bacolod City firefighters and volunteers, along with their trucks and firefighting equipment, rushed to Purok Cheviza in Barangay 27 to stop the fire that broke out in the neighborhood at 12:09 a.m. on Friday, September 12, 2025. -PHOTOS COURTESY OF PHILIPPINE RED CROSS – NEGROS OCCIDENTAL /BACOLOD CITY CHAPTER

The fire hit houses that were built of light materials close to each other in an area with a narrow pathway, making it difficult for firefighters to enter, she added.

The area had earlier been tagged by local authorities as a “red zone,” or an area vulnerable to fire.

READ: 2 senior citizens die in Bacolod fire

Bacolod City Mayor Greg Gasataya said the fire was believed to have started from the house of a couple who were fighting. The mayor said the city government assisted the fire victims who were evacuated to the nearby Mabini Elementary School./coa