Curb on company after deadly blaze

THE Philippines has barred a branch of an American call centre firm from expanding in the country following a pre-Christmas fire that killed dozens of its employees.

The Philippine Economic Zone Authority’s director-general, Charito Plaza, said the agency had suspended the operations of American firm Research Now SSI, as well as the shopping mall hosting it, for failing to meet certain safety requirements since 2013.

“They can operate again once they get a clearance from the Bureau of Fire and the local government,” Plaza said.

The authority’s suspension took effect on December 29, but it only covers SSI’s branch in the southern city of Davao, where the December 23 blaze broke out at a furniture and fabric store on a lower floor of the New City Commercial Centre mall before engulfing the call centre’s offices, killing 38 people.

SSI’s office in Cebu, in the central Philippines, would not be affected as it had been complying with Peza rules, Plaza said.

Investigators looking into the fire said there were indications that safety lapses might have contributed to the tragedy.

“Violations were more of non-compliance with annual emergency drills to test the fire safety equipment, response and rescue capability, sprinklers and emergency exits,” Plaza said.

SSI and the mall were registered with Peza in 2008, as a business process outsourcing firm and an economic zone developer, respectively. –