Fire destroys 2 houses in Mandaue

CEBU, Philippines - A mother almost lost her five-year-old son when a fire broke out yesterday around 2 p.m. in Barangay Looc, Mandaue City, destroying two houses.

“Nagkurog ko kung unsaon nako pagkuha akong anak kay ang hagdanan padung sa taas napuno na ug aso unya daku na ang kayo,” said Mary Baclohan, daughter-in-law of Milagros Baclohan, whose house was where the fire allegedly started. The nearby house of Nunila Antigua was also destroyed.

Mary said that she had to pass through the unfinished window of a nearby room to get to his son, who was sleeping at the time.

The Baclohan house, built in the 1940s, had five rooms upstairs occupied by five boarders and two rooms downstairs.

According to Mandaue City fire investigator Cipriano Codilla the fire started at the room of Leny Baroy, whose room is just beside the house of Mary.

Baroy said that she just arrived from Dumaguete City at around 2 p.m. and was charging her cellular phone when she went down to chat with Mary.

A few minutes later, people in front of their house were shouting there was a fire and she could no longer go upstairs due to thick smoke.

“Nag-charge ra gyud ko sa ako celphone unya ninaug ko. Kadiyot ra kaayo naay niingon ug sunog. Original man to akong charger,” said Baroy, who has been a boarder there since November of last year.

Another boarder, Lhen Pedrano, who is seven months pregnant, said she was inside her room when the fire broke out. Her daughter, who arrived from Bogo City a few minutes after the fire broke out, could only watch with her as the house burned.

“Wala ra ba mi paryente diri, ambot ug asa mi ani. Mopauli tingale mi sa Bogo pero wala mi kwarta kay wala gyud koy madala bisan unsa,” said Pedrano.

Bureau of Jail and Management Penalogy-7 employees Vanessa and Jerahmel Amlon, who are boarders of Baclohan’s house were sleeping when they saw thick smoke coming into their room.

“Hapit mi nangamatay kay wa mi kadungog nga naay nagsingit ug sunog. Nangatulog gud mi kay gikan pa mi sa duty. Di na gud mi makakita sa agi-anan tungod sa kabaga sa aso,” Jerahmel said.

Lee Jennie, a US veteran, who rented the house of Antigua, says he lost three laptops, two desktop computers, refrigerators, projectors, school supplies, documents and important files to the fire.

The Antigua house was used by Jennie as a school, the Adam Jennie’s Christian Center for Special Children, Inc. for five years until he was given three classrooms two years ago by Norkis Group chairman Norberto Quisumbing at the Norkis Park in the same barangay.

Before the fire broke out the house was being used as an office and sleeping quarters for the school’s 18 staff.

He placed the loss in equipment alone to $45,000.

“I am so heartbroken. I used by pension as a veteran to establish this school,” Jennie said.

Jennie’s school currently has 42 special children.

Had it not been for the firewall separating the two burning houses from others nearby, the fire could have rapidly spread throughout the neighborhood given the strong winds and high temperatures yesterday.

The burned houses were also located just beside the road and responding firefighters were able to use fire hydrants installed just a few meters away.

The fire was declared under control 24 after firemen arrived at the scene.

Aside from Mandaue Fire Station, fire trucks from Lapu-Lapu, Cebu, Liloan and Consolacion responded to the alarm that was raised to Task Force Alpha.

Codilla estimated the damage at P400,000. — (FREEMAN)