BY MAI LADIAO
ILOILO City – Fire broke out yesterday afternoon, Feb. 19, in Barangay East Timawa, Molo district.
The blaze gutted the house of 40-year-old Grace Baleno and partially damaged another owned by 51-year-old Albert Pingol. Both houses were made of light materials.
Thirteen individuals from the two families were displaced, according to the Iloilo City Disaster Risk Reduction Office.
Baleno recounted hearing a loud banging noise before realizing the dire situation.
“Una may nabatian kami nga naglagapok, pero wala man kami kabalo nga sunog nato gali,” she said.
A fire call was made at approximately 2:36 p.m. and reached a “3rd alarm” status. A “fire out” was declared by 3:04 p.m.
The community was also alarmed, as the burning houses were located behind Taal Elementary School. Though some pupils began to panic, astute teachers quickly initiated an evacuation, protecting the pupils and averting any possible danger.
In an interview with Nanay “Haydie,” a former daycare worker, she said, “Ang mga estudyante nagsala na pagkakita ka sunog, insigida man sila nga gin-secure sang mga maestra nila kag ipalayo, syempre sa bata pa nga edad naluoy kami kay ma-trauma na sila.”
An investigation into the origin of the fire is underway.
To recall, two individuals died in a fire that broke out a day before in La Paz district.
They were identified as third year Engineering student Renz David Aguilar, 22, of Concepcion, Iloilo, and call center agent Lynrose Sobretodo, 26, of Pototan, Iloilo.
Initial investigations showed that the incident was either electrical or there had been an unattended cooking, according to the city’s arson investigators.
The blaze on Sunday afternoon left three residential infrastructures totally damaged and four more partially damaged.
Damages left by the fire amount to over P2.1 million./PN
