Firemen's ordeal

Lizada fire ignites anew

THE fire that engulfed several houses and business establishments Tuesday dawn along Lizada Street, Barangay 26-C, Davao City was not yet declared fire out as of yesterday presstime, a fire investigator said.

Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) Davao City Fire and Arson Investigator SFO4 Ramil E. Gillado told Sun.Star Davao that as of 5 p.m. yesterday, the firefighters were still conducting extinguishment operations to contain the blaze, which responders have been trying to end for almost two days.

Gillado added that the firefighters were having a hard time stopping the fire because of the narrow area piled with products of the commercial structures,

preventing them to efficiently launch the clearing operation.

"Puno ng stocks mahirap pasukin kaya di makapagconduct ng direct extinguishment sa area," Gillado explained.

The blaze, which began around 3 a.m. on Tuesday, displaced over a hundred residents and destroyed property with an estimated worth of more than P1 million.

Based on the data of the Davao City Social Service and Development Office (CSSDO) as of 5 p.m., the fire razed around 30 houses while three other commercial establishments were affected.

They also recorded the number of victims including 24 homeowners, four sharers, 27 renters and 73 boarders.

CSSDO said that they are mapping out the residents who need financial assistance.

Gillado said that they could not yet determine the cause of the fire as they have not talked to the person named Mark Anthony Mersido who is the owner of the house where the fire started as witnesses claimed.

"Medyo malaki ang mga nadamay na business establishments still we are coordinating owner para sa damage," he said.

The firefighters initially declared the incident fire out at 4:29 a.m. yesterday morning, but it rekindled by around 8 a.m., Gillado said.

BFP has not recorded any casualty from the incident.

There are also other firefighters from other cities, part of the contingent for the Asean 2017 event, that came to help BFP Davao City.

CHRISTINE JOICE C. CUDIS TIME OUT. A fireman who just came out of a burning building shuts his eyes in pain due to his long exposure to the smoke from the burnt plastics and rubbers. The fire along Lizada Street, Barangay 26-C, Davao City started Tuesday dawn and at around 7...