At least 17 people died while three others were injured when a two-hour blaze gobbled up a two-storey commercial building in Butuan City yesterday morning, police officials said.
Chief Supt. Reynaldo Rafal, director of the CARAGA regional police, said a total of 17 cadavers were recovered as of 12 noon, or eight hours after the fire started at the ground floor of the building located in Montilla Boulevard in downtown Butuan City.
Police officials earlier said a total of 18 people were trapped and died inside the building but Senior Fire Officer 1 Virgilio Germata, case investigator of the Butuan City Fire office, said only 17 bodies were retrieved inside the quarters of the workers located at the second floor.
“Our figure is 17 dead, it’s already confirmed, and three others injured. There’s no more missing,” said Germata.
Germata said it was initially reported that 18 were trapped inside after the three survivors said a total of 21 people were inside the building when the flame gutted the building starting at around 4 a.m.
All of the victims, Rafal said, are stay-in workers of at least five stores housed in the building owned by a certain Boy Tan.
Supt. Martin Gamba, spokesman of the CARAGA regional police, said the building used to house a popular theater house in the area, adding that its owner had decided later to lease it to some local businessmen.
Currently, a branch of Novo Jeans, Globe, Smart, Western Union and St. Peter are renting in the building.
“Based on the initial investigation, the fire started allegedly inside the Novo Jeans outlet. But it is still being verified what started the fire,” said Gamba in a phone interview.
“All of the victims are stay-in workers, they were sleeping at the second floor of the building when it happened,” he added.
More than 15 fire trucks responded in the area to douse the flame, said Gamba. He added that the fire was controlled at around 6 a.m.
It was after the fire was controlled when the firemen began recovering the bodies of the victims, according to Gamba.
“Three persons were able to escape, apparently, all of them were caught by surprise and that they were trapped inside the burning building,” said Gamba.
Germata said the three victims were able to escape by forcing their way out and jumping off the second floor of the building.
“The rest of the victims might have failed to save their selves because the flame had already engulfed the building when they became aware of it. They were all suffocated to death,” said Germata.
The blaze damaged the middle portion of the 10-year old building, according to Germata.
“The initial estimate of the damage is about P30 million,” said Germata.
He said the flame might have spread easily because the building was already old.
So far, a command post was set up in the area for the coordination especially between the authorities and relatives of the victims.
It was not clear as of yesterday what caused the fire.
Part of the investigation, he added, is to determine if there were violations of the building code, especially on the accessibility of the fire exit which arson probers believe to be the reason why the victims were trapped.
The Butuan City fire is just one of the many deadly fires that hit the country in the past years. In 1996, at least 160 people died in a fire that hit the Ozone Disco in Quezon City.
In 2001, a total of 75 people were trapped and died inside the burning Manor Hotel in Quezon City, while 15 nursing students died after they were trapped when fire gobbled up a budget hotel in Cagayan province. (Aaron Recuenco)
source: mb.com.ph
