6 killed in Pasay blaze

Six people were killed, including a six-month-old boy, in a fire that gutted a residential area in Pasay City after midnight yesterday.

Authorities identified the fatalities as Adelina Pascua, 51, and her children Dolores, 32, and Philip, 14. Also killed were Pascua’s relative, Mary Jen, 23, and the young woman’s children, John Dave, 3, and six-month-old Mark Gerald.

The infant was reportedly burned to death while the rest died of suffocation.

No other injuries were reported.

Investigation showed the fire started at around 2:16 a.m. at a three-story residential building beside the Pascua’s two-story house in Barrio Pilipino, Aurora Boulevard in Tramo, said arson investigator Senior Fire Officer 1 Alfredo Delfin Jr.

According to Delfin, witnesses said they first saw smoke coming from the building and later flames started spreading to nearby houses.

The victims were unable to get out of their house and were trapped at the ground floor.

The fire reached Task Force Alpha and destroyed at least 47 other houses in the area. A "fire out" was declared at around 5:47 a.m.

Authorities are still determining the cause of the fire that destroyed an estimated P10 million worth of property.