Seven dead, thousands homeless in Manila fires

At least seven people were killed and thousands left homeless as two fires struck the Philippines on Christmas Day, sparking riots as a slum went up in flames, Manila’s fire marshal said yesterday. Six bodies were recovered and two other people were missing as a blaze erupted at dawn in a row of old apartments in the Baler section of northern Manila, said Chief Superintendent Santiago Laguna. Suspected arsonists meanwhile set off a second blaze at a sprawling shantytown across the city, sparking rioting that left one man dead and two others arrested, he said in an interview that aired over DZBB radio.

“They (residents) started grabbing hoses from our firefighters, who could not do anything as they feared for their own safety,” Laguna said. A man was beaten up and later died from his injuries in the melee as the blaze consumed the shantytown in the San Juan district, he added.

“They mistook him for a fireman,” he said of the victim, adding two suspected rioters were also arrested. Laguna said residents were apparently infuriated by the delayed arrival of firefighters and took it upon themselves to grab firehoses to aim at their blazing shanties.

However he said the residents were themselves to blame.

“Our firetrucks had difficulty entering the narrow streets that were blocked by parked cars and carts,” he said.

AFP