‘We’re also victims here,’ Serendra apartment owner says

MANILA—The United States-based owner of a high-end apartment in the Bonifacio Global City where a strong explosion killed three people last week has arrived in the Philippines to help shed light on what could have caused the tragedy.

Marianne Cayton, 40, whose family owns Unit 501B at the Two Serendra condominium building, arrived in the Philippines at around 6 a.m on Friday, a week after the explosion that destroyed the apartment.

Her first order of business was to visit family friend Angelito San Juan, 63, who remains confined at the intensive care unit of the St. Luke’s Medical Center in BGC, after he suffered second- and third-degree burns in the explosion.

The Caytons had lent the apartment from May 31 to June 9 to the fellow California-based family friend, as he was in the Philippines for a wedding. In the first week of the blast investigation, San Juan was considered “a person of interest.”

Cayton, accompanied by lawyer Raymond Fortun, arrived at the hospital at around 10:30 a.m. for a visit that took roughly 30 minutes.

A medical update from Fortun as of Friday morning described San Juan’s condition as “critical.”

“Oxygen intake still unstable, condition critical. Extubation, or removal of tubes from his mouth, not possible until about one week,” said a text message from Fortun.

Speaking to reporters at the driveway of the hospital after checking on San Juan, Cayton asked for prayers for the recovery of “Tito Lito.”

“We were not allowed to go near him. We could not talk to him yet because he’s still sedated and has a tube in his mouth,” she described.

Tears started to well in the diminutive Cayton’s eyes when she was asked how she reacted to news of the explosion:  “I cannot eat, cannot talk for two days. I was really traumatized. I could only think of the many people who died.”

“We didn’t want anyone to get hurt. It is not our fault. We have not done anything to cause the blast. We are also victims here. The whole family is traumatized,” she said in Filipino.

Nearing noon on Friday, Cayton had yet to see for herself the wrecked aparment. After the hospital visit, Fortun said they were going to Camp Crame in Quezon city to submit Cayton’s sworn statement to Mar Roxas.

The statement would include documents detailing the reported renovations in the aparment from April to May, to “dispel the theory” it was connected to the blast.

“We will be furnishing the government all the necessary documents, including the renovation plans, the communications between the interior designer and Ms Cayton during the construction, and photos while it was being done, just so everybody can be clear on the specific works and so there would be no speculations that there is a connection between the renovation and the blast,” Fortun said.

“We’re confident that when we submit documents, it will become very clear there should be no reason the government should accuse Marianne cayton of any involvement in the reason for the explosion,” the lawyer added.