9 perish in Pasay fire
Credit to Author: Tempo Desk| Date: Thu, 07 Feb 2019 08:18:04 +0000
By JEAN FERNANDO, DHEL NAZARIO
POLICE investigators and funeral workers retrieve the charred bodies of the nine persons who perished in a fire in Barangay 185, Maricaban, Pasay City, before dawn Thursday. (Jansen Romero)
NINE people perished when they were trapped inside their two-storey house during a one-hour fire in Pasay City before dawn Thursday.
Family members who died on the second floor of the house were identified as Michael Calma, 44; Mark Joseph, 23; John Clark, 17; and Andrew James, 11. The mother, Jasmine, survived and only suffered bruises on the body as she was able to jumped off the window.
The other fatalities were members of the Guablas family — Rhea, 40; Julius, 39; Julie, 46; Nicole, 9; and Jurick Andrea, 3. They were living on the first floor of the house.
According to the Bureau of Fire Protection, the fire broke out at about 2 a.m. at the house of the victims located at 336 Almazor St., Barangay 185, Maricaban, Pasay City.
The BFP said Jasmine claimed that she was awakened by the smoke surrounding their house. She later saw their computer on the first floor of the house that was left unplugged already on fire.
Jasmine also said that she hurriedly run inside their room to wake up her husband and their children.
She added that Michael, after learning that their house was already on fire, told her to jump out of their window and he was going to save their children.
However, the fire quickly spread because the house was mostly made of light materials.
Jasmine told probers that the last thing she heard during the incident was her husband’s cry for help.
The BFP said that the fire was placed under control at about 3:14 a.m.
Firefighters later found the bodies of the victims — three in the comfort room; two on the second floor, one in the kitchen, one inside the room, and the two others on the first floor near the door step of the house.
Authorities are still conducting investigation to determine the cause of the fire.