The blaze gutted at least 75 shanties at the corner of Emma and Standford streets before it was put out at around 11 p.m.
Senior Fire Officer 2 Nicolas Macote said the fire started at around 7:15 p.m. from the second floor of a house belonging to one Teresita Mendoza and immediately spread to neighboring houses.
The fire reached the fifth alarm. No one was reportedly hurt in the incident.
Macote said that it took them several hours to control the fire because firetrucks could not enter the narrow streets going to the area.
He added that affected residents fleeing the fire also blocked their path.
Although arson investigators have yet to determine the cause of the fire, they said it originated from the ceiling of Mendoza’s house, prompting them to consider faulty electric wiring as a possibility. — Edu Punay