Fire hits Mandaluyong warehouse; three hurt

Three people, including two women, were injured during a three-hour fire that razed a scrap paper warehouse and destroyed some P1.5 million worth of property in Mandaluyong City yesterday.

Superintendent Ericson Velasquez, Mandaluyong City police chief, said the victims Froilan Fernandez, 38; Maria del Alulod, 29; and Daisy dela Torre, 16, all residents of Barangay Plainview sustained minor burns.

They were rushed for treatment at the Mandaluyong City Medical Center (MCMC).

Velasquez said the fire started at the Corafer Trading scrap paper warehouse, located along Ginhawa Tanglaw street in Barangay Plainview at about 1:12 a.m. yesterday.

Fire prober SFO3 Avelino Caya said nobody was inside the establishment when the fire broke out. "There was not a single soul inside the warehouse when the fire broke out so the cause of the fire has not been determined," said Caya.

At least seven firetrucks from the local fire department and nearby towns and cities responded to the blaze that reached the fourth alarm.

As firetrucks emptied tanks of water, the entire neighborhood helped battle the blaze with pails of water. The fire was put under control at 4:45 a.m.

Velasquez said the victims were among the residents who helped battle the fire. Doctors have declared them as out of danger.

Caya said they are still conducting an examination of the ashes and looking for evidence to determine the real cause of the fire. – Non Alquitran