Man climbs coconut tree after burning their house

Suspect has not come down more than 24 hours after fire

Nicanor Alviola, Jr. has reportedly climbed the tree several times in the past

One time, he stayed on top of the tree for five days

In Lapu-Lapu City, a fire blamed on an overheated electric fan razes an apartment unit

Damage was estimated at P80,000

A 32-YEAR-OLD man believed to be mentally ill stayed atop a coconut tree after allegedly burning his family’s house in the mountain village of Linuthod, Argao last Saturday afternoon.

Investigation showed that Nicanor Alviola Jr. set their house on fire for no apparent reason. As of 6:46 p.m., the arson suspect has not come down from the tree.

The house, which was mostly made of wood, was leveled to the ground. His mother saw her son light up their house.

PO2 Cristino Can- ono, the desk officer, said P230,000 worth of properties were destroyed. No was hurt during the incident.

Firefighters failed to reach the house because it is situated eight to 10 kilometers from the main highway.

Canono, in a phone interview, said Alviola, a farmer, climbed and stayed on top of the same 40-foot coconut tree for five days last May.

In November 2015, he also climbed the same tree for five days.

In Barangay Poblacion, Lapu-Lapu City, a two-story apartment was razed by the fire past 8 a.m. yesterday.

SFO1 Zenir Seno of the Lapu-Lapu City Fire Central Department said the blaze started in the rented room of Fidji and Rexon Castro.

Investigators are eyeing the heated electric fan as cause of the fire, which spread to the other rooms.

Firefighters arrived in Yampoy and Ngujo compound around 9 a.m. They put out the fire two hours later.

Seno, in a phone interview, said no one was hurt during the incident. The damage was pegged at P80,000.