Boy, 10, dies in Cebu fire

CEBU CITY — A 10-year-old boy was killed during a 45-minute fire that hit Barangay Apas here last Friday night, authorities said.

Jose Carlo Esporaguera, a Grade 5 student of the National Bible School, was reportedly seen to have been in a safe distance when the fire broke out but neighbors believe he may have gone back to his house to salvage their things and was trapped instead.

Jose Carlo’s mother, Natalie, found her son’s charred body still in their rented room Saturday morning.

The fire broke out at about 8 p.m. Fire investigator Julieto Manding quoted residents as saying that the blaze started in the house of a certain Ramon Lapasa. During interrogation, Lapasa said he saw the fire start at the second floor of his house.

The flames easily razed 10 houses. Investigators placed the property loss at about P600,000. They still have to determine the cause of the fire.

Jose Carlo was the second fire-related fatality in four months.

Last March 28, a 70-year-old man was killed in a fire that struck Barangay Ermita.

The victim, Cristituto Soronio, was sound asleep reportedly due to drunkenness when the fire broke out. In attempts to bring him to safety, his son carried him.

Awakened, Soronio instead hit his son, forcing the young man to retreat and watch the flames consume his father. — Freeman News Service