A SUPPLIER of solar panels in Cebu City wants fire investigators in Oslob town to re-investigate the fire that razed three houses in the town last Wednesday night.
Local police said that the fire reportedly started when the solar panel of one of the houses exploded in Sitio Umbakon, Barangay Gawi.
Lowell Sanchez of Siga Solar Marketing Cebu said that solar panels when installed properly do not explode.
Sanchez said that most solar panels from reliable suppliers are tested by international testing centers, which subject them to the rigors of everyday use before they are certified.
In rare cases where solar panels are implicated in house fires, causes may have been poor solar panel quality, substandard installation practices or fire caught up by nearby combustible materials, he said.
Sanchez advised the public to choose a serious company with high quality products and trained engineers for their solar needs.
“Not only do you get better warranties and support, at basically the same cost as the less serious ones, but also the assurance of knowing that all installations are safe,” he added.
Police Insp. Deni Mari Pedrozo, chief of the Oslob police, said that they will look into the matter.
“Titingnan natin kung anong magagawa natin at makikipag-coordinate tayo sa Bureau of Fire Protection 7 (We’ll look into it and we will coordinate with the Bureau of Fire Protection 7),” said Pedrozo.
The fire started at 2:20 p.m. last Wednesday night in the house of Mary Anne Rollon Gornita, 35.
Gornita said that she heard explosions outside that forced her to go out where she saw her family’s solar panels on fire.
Damage was pegged at P30,000. With PR