A minor fire hit a seafood restaurant in Glorietta 4 causing panic among its customers and mall promenaders yesterday.
Faulty electrical wiring caused the fire that occurred at around 12:02 p.m. at the Seafood Seafood Market Restaurant, according to Makati Fire Marshall Jose Embang.
Embang said no one was injured in the fire but reporters saw a woman being rushed to the hospital due to suffocation.
Chief Superintendent Luizo Ticman, chief of the Southern Police District (SPD), said the incident was no cause for alarm because it was unrelated to the Glorietta 2 blast.
“It is now under control. The restaurant staff panicked after seeing thick smoke coming from the kitchen. There was no report of injury or death. This is an isolated case,” Ticman said.
Firefighters destroyed the glass window of the establishment to gain entry.
Security guards said the customers numbering more than 100 ran outside for safety after seeing the thick smoke billowing from the kitchen of the restaurant.
Meanwhile, the Department of Health (DOH) said yesterday that all government hospitals in Metro Manila are now on alert for another bombing and other possible emergencies.
Dr. Carmencita Banatin, chief of the DOH’s Health Emergency Service (HES) said all the 21 DOH-retained hospitals in Metro Manila are under “White Code” alert.
“This means that all DOH-retained hospitals have a ready team of health personnel to be mobilized for emergency like the bombing in Glorietta, doctors and ambulances are also on stand-by,” Banatin said in an interview.
Banatin said the DOH is ready to provide medicine and other assistance for the victims of last Friday’s bombing but the owners of Glorietta are shouldering the cost of the medical treatment.
“But if there is a need for our assistance we are always ready anytime,” Banatin said. – Mayen Jaymalin