Holy Week fire in Makati shanty town razes 900 homes

In congested urban communities, a small act of carelessness can produce an inferno, which is what may have happened in an old section of Makati at midday Tuesday when an estimated 900 homes burned down, injuring at least nine people, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC). A report on GMA News' "24 Oras" Tuesday night quoted the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) as saying that the fire may have resulted from a rice cooker that was left unattended. An initial NDRRMC report stated that P9 million worth of property was destroyed in Tuesday noon's fire in a vast and crowded urban poor community in Guadalupe Viejo, Makati. Traffic along EDSA was tied up for hours Tuesday afternoon as a result of the blaze. Several thousand homeless spent the night on the streets and in a parking lot. "The fire affected more or less 2,700 families, leaving nine injured and burned approximately 900 houses. The cost of damage is estimated at PhP9,000,000.00," it said in its initial report Tuesday night. It said the fire started at 11:59 a.m. and razed shanties made of light materials at the Laperal Compound in Guadalupe Viejo village in Makati City.

According to the NDRRMC, the fire was placed under control at 2:05 p.m. and was put out at 2:54 p.m. Meanwhile, Makati City Mayor Jejomar Erwin Binay Jr. ordered the city's agencies to extend assistance to victims of the fire. "The city Social Welfare Office has set up a community kitchen to provide food for the victims, and began distributing relief goods, clothing, and blankets. The Engineering Department has started constructing makeshift tents where the victims can stay temporarily," the city government said in its web portal. It added the Health Department and Makati Rescue will man the first aid and medical assistance centers. Binay also said they will seek the approval of the Nuestra Señora de Gracia Church to allow victims to stay there for the meantime. Families will also be moved to the barangay covered court and nearby public schools. - KBK/HS, GMA News