1 killed, 5 hurt in shantytown fire

MANILA, Philippines - A woman died after flames razed a slum community in Quezon City before dawn yesterday.

The body of Leni Omedes, 57, was found amid the ruins of her four-story house in Sitio Mendez, Barangay Baesa.

Resident Maurillo Canseco’s face and back were burned during the fire, said Superintendent Samuel Tadeo, deputy city fire marshal.

Four volunteer firefighters were also injured when a fire truck turned over along North Avenue.

Tadeo said the flames reportedly began at the Omedes house around an hour past midnight. The flames spread through Sitios Mendez, Pajo and Militar, prompting firefighters to raise the alarm to Task Force Bravo.

The fire was placed under control just before 4 a.m. and was put out an hour later.

Some 150 houses were gutted, leaving more than 450 families homeless. The property damage caused by the fire was pegged at P2 million.