A TOTAL of 11 unserviceable buses were razed by fire at the storage in One Communities South Hill, Barangay Cabug, Bacolod City on Sunday afternoon, April 20, 2025.
Fire Officer 2 Rolin Paulan, chief arson investigator of the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP)-Bacolod, said a total of nine unserviceable buses were destroyed and two others were damaged.
He said one of the employees, Frederico Azuelo, 62, sustained minor burns on his stomach.
He said the junk yard was owned by Charles Anthony Dumancas.
Investigation showed the fire started at 1:52 p.m. and was put out at 2:21 p.m. and destroyed at least P20,000 worth of properties.
Paulan said the fire was caused by an electrical ignition.
He said the wind blew off the plain sheet and hit the electrical wire going to the bunkhouse, adding that the live wire fell on the buses that started the ignition.
Paulan noted that Azuelo tried to put out the fire, but unfortunately, he was hit by fire and was given a first aid.
The BFP advised the business establishment with storage to put up a material safety data sheet to determine the content of their storage and to avoid the mixing of the chemicals.
They also urged the owners to secure a permit for the storage facility to ensure the putting up of necessary proactive fire prevention.
Paulan reminded the public to avoid overloaded electrical connections and have their wirings regularly checked by competent electricians while those that are corroded or dysfunctional should be replaced. (MAP)