14 injured, 80 houses razed in QC explosion

Fourteen people were hurt while around 80 houses were destroyed after an explosion brought about by a leak in a gasoline tanker in Quezon City early yesterday.

Senior Fire Officer 1 Jaime Biscocho of the Central Fire District said the fire erupted at around 5:37 a.m. and reached the second alarm three minutes later.  A fire-out was declared at around 9 a.m. yesterday.

Reports reaching the Central Fire District office in Agham Road disclosed that only Roberto Daza, of Bgy. Holy Spirit, suffered third-degree burns in the forehead and other parts of his body while the 13 other victims sustained minor injuries which they sustained while running for safety.  Daza was brought to the General Malvar Hospital while the remaining victims were brought to various hospitals for treatment.

Biscocho said among the houses burned was a house in a village nearby but most were shanties at a squatter’s area along the creek of Bgy. Holy Spirit.

He added that affected areas of Bgy. Holy Spirit were communities or villages in Don Gregorio, Don Victorino, and Don Antonio Heights.

Information from the Quezon City Police District’s Criminal Investigation Unit  (QCPD-CIU) revealed that a gasoline tanker of Shell leaked at around 5:30 a.m. yesterday after it accidentally ran over a large stone, as it was about to turn right to Don Antonio to deliver gasoline at a nearby gas station.

The QCPD-CIU is conducting a parallel investigation of the incident to determine if the explosion is an isolated case, even as QCPD director Chief Superintendent Nicasio Radovan said they are initially surmising that it was purely accidental.

QCPD investigator Jimmy Gimena, explained that the tanker ran over a large stone at the corner of Don Antonio Heights and Commonwealth Avenue, which made the truck bounce hard causing the part connecting the truck and tanker to hit the gate valve of the gasoline tanker.

"Talagang wasak yung gate valve kaya malakas ‘yung leak ng gasoline," Gimena told The Star.

An estimated 5,000 liters of gasoline subsequently crept onto the drainage leading to a creek in Bgy. Holy Spirit.

Radovan said that someone might have thrown a lighted object like a cigarette and triggered the explosion.  But other reports said a garbage fire, ignited the spilled gasoline, causing the flames.

"Umapoy ‘yung creek tapos nagkaroon ng explosion. Sumabog ‘yung sa kanal kasi confined sa ilalim (ng lupa). Pero minor lang naman ‘yung pagsabog," Radovan told The Star, adding that this caused some concrete manhole covers to fly into the air.

Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr. visited the affected area and checked on the condition and welfare of the affected families.

Authorities have yet to estimate the cost of damage caused by the blast.