Global General
Fire destroys 1,000 houses in Metro Manila
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-12-23 21:32
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 Firemen extinguish fire on the suburb of Manila, the Philippines, December. 23, 2009. At least 600,000 shanties and hundreds of families were affected.[Xinhua]  |
MANILA: A large fire occurred in a poor residential area in Metro Manila one day before the Christmas Eve, damaging at least 1,000 houses and leaving more than 3,000 families homeless.
The fire started at about 10:30 a.m. in a house along Bonifacio Street bordering Makati and Pasay cities and was put out by firefighters in the afternoon, said Senior Superintendent Pablito Cordeta, chief of the Fire Protection Bureau in Metro Manila.
Some 350 affected families from Makati City are seeking temporary settlement at the city hall.
Residents from the affected villages in Pasay City had either cramped themselves at a nearby bus station or carried their belongings all the way up to a nearby overpass.
Initial investigation showed that the fire could have been triggered by a cooking stove that was left unattended, Cordeta said.
