HUNDREDS of residents of Isla Verde, mostly Badjaos, lost their homes to a fire that struck their community on Wednesday afternoon, February 20.
Some of the affected families hauled their things to their boats as firefighters, constrained by the narrow streets and fragile bridges, had difficulty fighting the flames that engulfed Purok 4, Isla Verde, Barangay 23-C, Davao City.
The fire razed 200 houses and left hundreds of residents homeless. No casualties were reported.
Senior Fire Officer (SFO) 2 Ramil Gillado, Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) Davao chief of intelligence and investigation section, said the fire was reported to their office around 1:20 p.m. and was put under control at 2:35 p.m.
The alarm status reached fourth alarm. Among those that responded were the Central Fire Station, Filipino Chinese Fire Volunteer, 911 Fire Auxiliary, Davao Youth Volunteers.
The fire, fanned by strong winds from the sea, quickly tore through the community as most of the houses were made of light materials and situated close to each other.
As of 4 p.m., Gillado said that clearing operation was still being conducted to prevent the fire from rekindling while investigation is still ongoing to determine the cause and origin of the incident.
Based on interviews with the witnesses, there were different accounts given to the authorities. They are still verifying every piece of information that they received.
Some witnesses have pointed to two houses where the fire was believed to have started. Both houses were unoccupied during the incident.
Based on the estimate of the Purok leader, around 200 houses were burned down but the BFP is still coordinating with the Davao City Social Security and Development Office (CSSDO), which is conducting the profiling of the displaced fire victims.
The owners of those houses that were destroyed will get P10,000 while owners of houses that were damaged will get P5,000.
The renters will receive P5,000 each while sharers and boarders will get P2,000 financial assistance.
The victims are temporarily staying at the covered court in Barangay 23-C.