DAVAO CITY — The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) in Davao City has recorded a total of PHP2.5 million in damages caused by a series of fire incidents in the first three days of the month.
Davao City Fire District spokesperson Senior Fire Officer (SFO) 2 Ramil Gillado bared this during a press conference with the Armed Forces of the Philippines – Philippine National Police Press Corps at the Royal Mandaya Hotel on Wednesday.
Of the recorded conflagrations, Gillado said six were caused by an electrical short circuit or were electrical-related.
Based on BFP records, the blaze in Del Carmen, Seaside 2 in Matina Aplaya on Tuesday claimed PHP900,000 worth of damages from the 25 razed structures. The fire originated from the house of Erlito Valentin caused by an electrical short circuit.
Hours later, a fire occurred in front of the Tibungco Public Market where PHP800,000-worth of property was gutted down, caused by unattended cooking. The damaged properties included five commercial buildings, a Christian church, a beauty shop, and a tailor shop.
On the same day, a fire hit Pag-asa, Bankerohan with PHP500,000-worth of property burned, mostly market stalls. The fire was caused by an electrical short circuit that started in the house of a certain Abdulmajid Jaladil.
A store in Bankerohan owned by a certain Mary Jean Ogang was razed, with an estimated damage of PHP300,000. It was caused by an electrical short circuit.
This was followed by another fire incident at the Southern Philippines Medical Center due to an overheated air conditioning unit.
The BFP also recorded a grass fire in Barangay Baliok, explosion of electric service entrance post of the Davao City Hall of Justice and electric post fire in Matina Aplaya which all happened on April 1.
Gillado urged the people to be more cautious, especially on the use of electrical appliances.
While most fire incidents affected residential areas, Gillado said, “The Bureau of Fire Protection has no jurisdiction to conduct an inspection” in private residences.
He said the BFP only conducts information and education campaign in the barangays to raise awareness on preventive measures.(Armando Fenequito Jr/PNA)
