Fire razes Liwayway building, Makati eatery; 3 hurt

MANILA, Philippines - Three people were hurt as two fires broke out in Makati City yesterday, one gutting the abandoned Liwayway publishing house along Chino Roces Avenue and the other an eatery in San Antonio Village.

The blaze originated at the centralized air-conditioning control room in the Liwayway building’s ground floor, said Superintendent Samuel Tadeo, chief of the Makati Fire Department. It started at about 10:50 a.m. and reached Task Force Alpha before it was put out at about 3 p.m.

Task Force Alpha meant that additional fire trucks outside southern Metro Manila were sent to the area, Tadeo said.

The main cause of the fire has yet to be known but it is possible that workers using acetylene torches to cut metal bars in the building may have caused it, Tadeo said. The fire quickly spread as the building’s beams were made mostly of wood, paper had been stored in the building, and oil remained in the printing presses. Firefighters said only half of the one-hectare building had been destroyed.

Two of the firefighters who helped put out the blaze were rushed to the Ospital ng Makati. Senior Fire Officer Edgar Serafico suffered a heart attack and passed out due to the thick smoke, while FO3 Renato Limusinero stepped on a two-inch nail. Building officials vowed to help the casualties, Tadeo said.

Meanwhile, a 15-minute fire broke out at an eatery in San Antonio Village near the Makati Central Fire Station caused by a liquefied petroleum gas tank leak. The owner of the eatery sustained one-degree burns, said fire official Tito Purgatorio.