ILOILO City – On Mother’s Day, two grandmothers lost their properties to a midday fire in Barangay Lapuz Norte, Lapuz district.
The houses of Madelyn Bariquit, 59, and Doloris Andrade, 61, were among the 12 razed by fire past 12 noon yesterday.
Nine were destroyed while three were damaged, Deputy City Fire Marshal Arden Bedoña said, citing initial investigation.
Investigators were still trying to determine the cause as of this writing.
The Sunday blaze started at around 12:26 p.m. Firefighters put it “under control” at around 13:04 p.m. and declared “fire out” at 1:29 p.m.
They said the affected houses were made of light and mixed (concrete and light) materials.
Bedoña said they were looking at the house of Bariquit as possible origin of the blaze.
Four residents were reported injured, the Iloilo City Fire Station said.
They were Ronnel Descalsoto, 42, Rommel Descalsoto, 36, Reymart Badiola, 22, and Oliver Agapito, 19.
Investigators estimated the cost of damage at around P300,000.
Bariquit told Panay News she burned garbage outside of their house before the fire occurred.
“I splashed the burning garbage with water but there might have been some fire left,” she said in Hiligaynon.
Bariquit said she was unable to salvage any belonging.
“Our house was gutted. We saved nothing, not even a piece of clothing. This pair of slippers I’m wearing I borrowed from our neighbor,” she said.
“The fire was so big I didn’t know what to do. I just told my grandchildren to leave the house right away. We have nowhere to live now,” she added.
Andrade said she first saw the fire eating up a portion of their kitchen.
“I was carrying my grandchild when I saw it. I rushed outside our house and shouted, ‘There’s a fire! There’s a fire!’” she said in Hiligaynon.
She said she was unable to save any belonging from the fire either. (IPC/PN)
