Fire hits east coast slum area

SEVEN houses were razed when a fire hit a slum area in an east coast village in Zamboanga City, an official of the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) said.

Superintendent Dominador Zabala Jr., fire marshal of the BFP's Zamboanga City Fire District (ZCFD), said the fire that hit the slum area at San Juaniño Drive, Mampang village, nine kilometers east of the city, broke out around 4:10 p.m. Wednesday.

He said the fire broke out when a group of children were playing with bonfire near a house owned by Murada Pulalon.

Pulalon denied, however, that the fire started from her house, saying her neighbor's residence was the first to be burned down.

The fire did not destroy the entire community despite the houses being closely built from each other, because residents tried to put off the fire while waiting for the arrival of the firemen.

The community comprises at least 50 houses mostly made of light materials, Zabala said.

He said they have yet to determine the total damage caused by the fire, which was contained in less than an hour. (Bong Garcia/Sunnex)