COTABATO CITY – Fire investigators are eyeing electrical short circuit as the cause of a weekend fire that destroyed some PHP20-million worth of goods and properties at the Chinese-owned Sunstar Commercial Center in Tacurong City, a fire official said Tuesday.
Fire Officer 2 Nicanor Pagulong, Tacurong City fire investigator, said Tuesday that the fire, which occurred on June 2, emanated from the top floor of the two-stordy building located along Magsaysay Avenue, Barangay Poblacion, Tacurong City.
Pagulong said the fire spread quickly, an indication it was ignited by an electrical short circuit. Plastic wares and flammable materials are situated at the second floor of the establishments registered in the name of Filipino-Chinese businesswoman Rosetta Gamotea.
Nobody was hurt in the fire, the third incident that occurred in recent days in Tacurong City, a two-hour drive from Cotabato City.
“Estimated cost of damage was placed at more than PHP20-million,” Pagulong said in his report.
Fire Chief Inspector Julio Gabut, Tacurong City fire marshal, lauded firefighters from nearby towns for responding to the blaze that started 8:00 a.m. and put out some four hours later.
Gabut also lauded firemen for preventing the blaze from reaching nearby establishments. (Noel Punzalan/PNA)
