Fire razes heavily populated Manila neighborhood

PRIZED POSSESSION Residents carry a refrigerator out of their house during the fire that swept through a community of informal settlers in Sta. Cruz, Manila.—JAM STA. ROSA

Another fire broke out in a residential area in Sta. Cruz, Manila, near where three men were killed when an earlier fire on Friday razed through rows of houses.

The new fire raged for at least four hours on Oroquieta Street, a heavily populated area, before it was put out near midnight of Friday.

At least 200 houses made of light materials were destroyed and P1.5 million in valuables lost, according to SFO3 Sonny Lacuban, arson investigator.

At least 500 families were displaced.

Hospital evacuation

Some 400 patients were evacuated from Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital, a maternity hospital which was near the site of the fire, he added. No one was injured or hurt.

Chief Insp. Crissob Cante, head of operations of the Bureau of Fire Protection-Manila, said the fire started from the sixth floor of a structure in the Oroquieta community and spread quickly in the neighborhood because of the strong winds and materials used on houses.

5th fire

The area was known to host a community of informal settlers who built houses made of plywood, cardboard and salvaged materials.

Lacuban said the Friday fire was the fifth blaze to hit Sta. Cruz since January.

Before dawn on Friday, three people were killed in another fire in a commercial building along Blumentritt Road.