P1.8 damage in Catmon dawn fire

CEBU, Philippines — A commercial building, four houses, and three vehicles were eaten up by a fire that hit Barangay Corazon in Catmon town at past 2 a.m. yesterday.

FO1 Ramuel Supieza of the Catmon Fire Station said they received the alarm at 2:20 a.m.

The fire was controlled after about 50 minutes but not after it razed the commercial building that housed the stalls of Ruth Marie Fruta, Rene Colinares, Victor Nuñeza, Mona Climaco and Linda Duran.

The fire did not spare the houses owned by Peter Molihon, Rogelio Pontillas, Nicolas Fruta, and Rasario Rolle, as well as a Toyota Avanza, a motorcycle and a tricycle.

In an adjacent building, the stalls owned by Florante Rolle, Jose Villanueva, Apolinaria Orio, and Renagen Matus were partially damaged.

Supieza said damaged was pegged at P1.8 million.

The fire reached a second alarm that firefighters from neighboring towns Carmen, Sogod, and Danao came to the rescue.

Supienza said the fire originated from Fruta’s stall. Investigation revealed it was triggered by a loose outlet where the refrigerator was pulled. 

 “Ang cause electrical connection overload. Didto naggikan sa luag nga outlet nga gisaksakan sa wire sa refrigerator nga ni-spark,” Supienza said.

There were people at the store at that time but could only save a handful owing to shock.

The stall and the houses were made of mixed light and concrete materials, which made it easy for the fire to spread quickly. 

Supienza said firefighters had a difficult time accessing the area owing to the narrow road. The fire was placed under control at 3:10 a.m. but it was put out completely at around 5 a.m. —JMO (FREEMAN)