Pasay fire leaves 4 dead

A predawn fire in a shanty community in Pasay City on Monday trapped a family of four inside their house, killing all of them, including an eight-year-old child and a pregnant woman.

Nida Dakimat, 50; her 24-year-old son Ramil; his pregnant live-in partner Dana Mente, 19; and Dakimat’s granddaughter Cindy Pakira, 8, suffocated when they failed to find a way to get out of their two-story house on Sapatasahai Street in Barangay (village) 201, Zone 20.

SFO2 Daniel Mansala told the Inquirer that the fire started at 3:45 a.m. in the house of couple Mario and Dian Barachea which is located in the middle portion of the shanty community. The cause of the fire, however, remains under investigation, he added.

According to Mansala, firemen later recovered the bodies of the victims after the blaze was put out shortly before 9 a.m.

The fire which lasted for about five hours destroyed 300 houses and the warehouse of a courier company.

It affected some 450 families and damaged around P1.5 million worth of property, he added.

Arson investigators said the flames easily spread to other houses in the area because these were mostly made of light materials.

The narrow pathways in the shanty community and a strong breeze also made it difficult for firefighters to put out the fire at once.

Affected residents were suspicious about the cause of the fire as they claimed they were facing the threat of demolition although the Pasay Fire Department said that it was still verifying the allegation.