Downtown Manila fire disrupts LRT 1 operations

Thick black smoke from a fire in Manila's downtown area disrupted the Light Rail Transit Line 1's operations for more than an hour Friday morning. LRT Administration spokesman Hernando Cabrera said they had to briefly stop the operations and eventually resort to half-line operations from Central Station in Manila to Baclaran in southern Metro Manila. "Yung sunog malapit sa Blumentritt, malapit sa station. Ito rin ay malapit sa ating rectifier station, parang transformer namin para sa power supply. Dahil magiging apektado ang tren at pasahero na naghihintay doon, minabuti naming itigil ang operation mga 9:05," Cabrera said in an interview on dzBB radio. He said they partially resumed operations at 9:11 a.m., but limited this to Baclaran and Central Station.

A separate report on dzBB said the LRT 1 resumed full operations past 10 a.m., after the fire was placed under control. Earlier, radio dzBB's Tuesday Niu reported LRT coaches from Monumento in Caloocan City were forced to stop at the R. Papa sation in Manila's Tondo district. LRT guards explained to passengers the LRT coaches could not proceed due to poor visibility conditions caused by the smoke. They added the trains' operators were "advised" to stop at R. Papa station. No timetable was immediately given as to when normal LRT 1 operations can resume, the report added. A separate report by dzBB's Carlo Mateo said the fire occurred at the corner of Rizal Avenue and Bulacan Street, and had reached the third alarm as of past 9 a.m. No one was initially reported injured in the fire, which started at the house of one Annabelle Marquez. Police kept watch over the area to prevent looters from exploiting the situation, radio dzBB's Glen Juego reported. The LRT 1 is to limit its operations from May 28 to 31, operating only between Baclaran and Blumentritt, to integrate the signaling system of the North Extension Project into its existing system. — LBG, GMA News